RWBY: Bloody Snow: Volume 1
by Spat915
Summary: "Though the forest is dark and grimm, We must carry on lest the world be torn asunder." Follow teams RWBY and JNPR as they go about their lives after the end of RWBY: Volume 1, while Roman Torchwick remains at large. Chapters 1-7 are rated T.
1. Chapter 0: Author's Note

**Author's Note:**

**Since I started writing this as just practice for situations in other Works in Progress, I didn't have an index of terms. This turned out to be a slight inconvenience to a friend, so I decided I will put this at the beginning of the story to clarify characters, places, items, and other words and concepts that are not self-explanatory, including a brief description of my versions of aura and semblance, as well as other concepts that someone who hasn't watched Volume 1 wouldn't understand. Now enough of this long paragraph, let's start defining!**

Places

Beacon Academy, City of Vale, Vale, Vytal – This is the school that the main characters attend. Beacon Academy is located on the cliffs at the edge of the City of Vale in the kingdom of Vale. It is much like any College or University in that the students are accepted based on educational statistics, but Beacon also looks at physical statistics as the students are training to become warriors. The campus is the size of a small city with housing for most students as well as educators, administrators, and guests. It is possible for the academy to go into lock-down and remain self-sufficient without need of outside assistance.

City of Vale, Vale, Vytal – This is the city that Beacon Academy sits on the edge of. It is the capital of the kingdom Vale in the Vytal region. The city is surrounded on two sides by forest, one side by ocean, and the remaining side by Beacon Academy that sits atop cliffs that are surrounded by forest.

White Castle – The primary home of Mr. and Mrs. Schnee, and headquarters of the Schnee Corporation's Restricted Research and Development facilities. The castle was once a fortress for humanity in the region during the war that pushed the grimm out of habitable areas.

* * *

Grimm

Grimm – the general term used to describe vicious animals that are for whatever reason extremely hostile to human beings even when not provoked. When killed, the creatures seem to evaporate, leaving no trace of their existence after the process is complete. This process normally takes anywhere from approximately 5 minutes for beowolves to approximately 8 hours for a large death stalker.

Boarbatusk – a subspecies of grimm that resembles a wild hog. It has large curled horns and has heavy armour everywhere except its stomach. It mostly attacks by charging its opponents.

Beowolf – a subspecies of grimm that resembles a giant wolf. It has almost no armour, but makes up for this weakness with razor-sharp claws on its hands and feet as well as long fangs. The wolves often stick in packs of four or more and are often seen walking on only their hind legs unless in a rush to change position on the battlefield. These creatures tend to lack in agility and therefore rely on strength and numbers, making their attacks relatively easy to avoid unless surrounded.

Death Stalker – a subspecies of grimm that resembles a giant scorpion. It has heavy armour and is not easily defeated due to its tank-like impenetrability. The creature's claws and stinger make up its offensive elements, and unlike the Boarbatusk, it does not have a lack of armour on its underside.

Ursa – a subspecies of grimm that resembles a bear. This creature is normally categorized into two categories – Major and Minor. All Ursi have armour similar to Beowolves, but are much tougher to kill due to their larger size and slightly thicker hide. Their offensive capabilities are similar to normal bears.

Nevermore – a subspecies of grimm resembling several current and prehistoric avian creatures. It has little actual armour but is often difficult to take down as it has a ranged attack that sends razor-sharp feathers at its targets. The Nevermore is larger than a Death Stalker and equally aggressive. These birds have no preference to hunting in a pack and are often only found in groups of one to three.

King Taijitu – a subspecies of grimm resembling a two-headed snake. The creature is approximately the same size as a Nevermore and has heavy scales as armour. It's methods of attack are similar to most snakes, including constriction and using its large fangs. It's fangs are not lethally poisonous in small doses.

* * *

People

Ruby Rose (RWBY) – At age 15, she was the youngest student to ever enter Beacon Academy. The headmaster admitted her after she successfully stopped a robbery at a dust shop and joined a fully qualified huntress in the attempt to capture the criminal Roman Torchwick. She was partnered with Weiss Schnee at the Beacon Initiation Test, and was chosen as the leader of Team RWBY (Pronounced Ruby) by the headmaster. After a bad first impression with her partner, she has been working hard to be the best leader she can be for her team.

Weiss Schnee (RWBY) – The 17-year-old entered Beacon Academy from her excellent academic record as she had been home-schooled up until she was granted admission. She is the heiress to the Schnee Corporation and as such has been brought up in a high class household. She had some trouble adjusting to public society where she didn't always get what she wanted. She is grateful to Port for his wise words that helped her come to terms with Ruby's appointment as team leader.

Blake Belladonna (RWBY) – The 17-year-old entered Beacon Academy after quitting the faunus organization dubbed the White Fang after realizing the negative turn that had been taken in the organization's methods. She is a Cat faunus with small black ears that she keeps hidden in public with a black bow atop her head.

Yang Xiao Long (RWBY) – Age 17 and the older sister of Ruby Rose, Yang is best described as an fun-loving and energetic. She entered Beacon as the next step in her normal education and is glad that her sister was admitted early. Despite her generally careless nature, she tends to be almost motherly to Ruby and her teammates when it matters. She also has a good sense of when to curb her personality and be respectful.

Jaune Arc (JNPR) – Age 17 and leader of Team JNPR (Pronounced Juniper), Jaune comes from a long line of warriors. Despite this, he was required to enter Beacon with a falsified transcript due to his lacking physical attributes. Although lacking in combat experience, he was able to help his team strategize against a Death Stalker during initiation, resulting in the creatures death with the cost of none of his teammates. He was partnered with the famous athlete Pyrrha Nikos.

Nora Valkyrie (JNPR) - Age 17 and childhood friend of Lie Ren, Nora entered Beacon because of her excellent combat skills. Nora is immature for her age and often takes large risks without thinking of the consequences. Among these risks is her choice to ride on the back of an Ursa Minor during the initiation ceremony. In the odd times that she isn't rushing ahead and talking at full speed, she is grateful for Ren's constant companionship.

Pyrrha Nikos (JNPR) – Age 17 and four-time winner of the Mistral Regional Tournament, Pyrrha is a star athlete that appeared on the front of a cereal box. She does not rely on her fame as Weiss tends to, and is generally a kind person who tends to take the morally high road. She ends up saving Jaune in the Initiation and later offers to help him train his combat skills. She is analytic and often acts as a secondary leader to her team, often discussing things with Jaune and providing advice.

Lie Ren (JNPR) – Age 17 and an orphan, Lie Ren comes to Beacon in order to train his skills to protect those who can't. His childhood friend Nora followed his decision, and applied at the same academy. Ren trained himself in martial arts and in how to use his aura effectively. He has an older brother that is the leader of a criminal gang in his home town that is responsible for his parents' murders. Ren often finds himself keeping Nora out of trouble but doesn't mind as he likes her ability to be continuously joyful. His name is in reverse order as is common in much of Asia, placing the family name before the given name.

Team CRDL – Pronounced Cardinal, the team consists of four members. Cardin Winchester leads the team and is quite muscular compared to the rest of the students at Beacon. Cardin is homophobic, discriminatory and a bully, but also recognizes there is a time and place for everything even if he refuses to abide by it for the most part. Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, and Sky Lark make up the remaining three spots on team CRDL and have similar personalities to Cardin, who leads them.

Ozpin – The headmaster of Beacon Academy. Ozpin personally assigns team leaders and admitted Ruby after her debriefing by Glynda. Ozpin loves caffeine and comes off as mysterious to most people.

Glynda Goodwitch – A huntress employed at Beacon Academy by Ozpin, she was present the night Ruby stopped the dust robbery and ended up saving Ruby when a mysterious huntress showed up. She is strict and does not give much leeway to others. She often plays the role of secretary and speaker for Ozpin although her employment requires her to organize combat practice for teams as well as escort trips into grimm territory such as the Forever Fall forest.

Peter Port – A retired hunter in the employ of Beacon Academy for the purpose of teaching Grimm Studies. He is a wise man who came out of retirement at the request of Ozpin. He encourages his students to come to him if they need help or guidance in their lives.

Bartholomew Oobleck – A history teacher at Beacon Academy. He tends to constantly move around the room and drink coffee. He often leaves the class before the students after he dismisses them.

Roman Torchwick – A criminal mastermind and ex-hunter, Roman has a flair for the dramatic and theatrical except for when he sees himself or his plan in danger. He does little of his own work, instead choosing to delegate to hired guns such as the White Fang.

* * *

Organizations, Groups and Businesses

Human – Just your everyday sack of organs. Humans fought off the creatures of grimm and live in areas protected by hunters. Humans are not the dominant species in the world as grimm outnumber total humans and faunus by a 4:1 ratio. In the past, humans attempted to confine the whole faunus species in an area called Menagerie. They lost the resulting civil war.

Faunus – A parallel branch to Human evolution. Faunus tend to share traits with their animal likeness (such as dietary preference). The faunus population is dwarfed in comparison to the nine-times-larger human population. As a general rule, faunus tend to possess better vision at night than Humans, as well as slightly higher average reflexes. Although these statistics do not necessarily apply to every faunus, it played a major part in their victory against humans. In general, most faunus just want to be treated the same as humans.

White Fang, The – A faunus organization that was originally formed to fight for the rights of the faunus through peaceful protesting. Since the change of leaders in the previous year, the organization has gained infamy for being criminally active. This criminal activity has negatively affected the general public's view on the faunus to the extent where some racist stereotypes have once again become prevalent in certain circles of society.

Schnee Corporation – the corporation run by Weiss's father that is the umbrella corporation responsible for the Schnee Dust Company. The company is often being criticized for its questionable business partners and outdated faunus rights. It is the most wealthy single corporation in the world and is also the leader in clean energy and dust production.

* * *

Events

Beacon Initiation – A mission to go into a grimm infested forest, get an item that has been placed inside, and escape alive. In addition, people who make eye contact become partners for the rest of their time at Beacon Academy (Only one partner per person.). At the end of the initiation, there is a ceremony where two partner groups are formed into a single team.

* * *

Concepts

Dust – mysterious crystal based elemental weaponry. It can be ground down to powder or used as a whole crystal. Schnee Corp. uses dust to fuel creation of clean energy. The same company also has found a way to create synthetic dust that has combined powers from multiple dust types. Weiss possesses a weapon specifically designed to use dust – the Multi Action Dust Rapier, or MADR.

Aura – the energy that your body uses to function. It's production has been attributed to the soul, but has not been scientifically proven. Controlling aura grants the benefits of increased movement speed, strength, and healing ability. Advanced users can project their aura to create a force field to protect themselves and others within a user specific range.

Semblance – an ability that comes unique to each individual much like an evolutionary benefit to help survive in combat against grimm. Examples are Ruby's super speed that allows her to move faster than the eye can follow with the drawback of forming rose petals in her wake. Weiss can summon glyphs that are simply circular disks with snowflake patterns. Weiss's semblance has a variable that she controls to affect momentum. Semblance is often found by chance and has the drawback of using copious amounts of aura when in use.

Age of Majority - Most places in the developed world have an age when children become legal adults and are given the privelege to vote, smoke, and drink. In the world of this story, the age of majority is 14 due to the archaic world the story takes place in. That means that even coming to Beacon two years early, Ruby is legally allowed to smoke a cigar, while doing shots over a ballot box. (But we all know she's too responsible to do that!) This is simply something to keep in mind when the characters interact as if they are older than they actually are.

Average Life Expectancy - As it is directly related to the rules of Age of Majority (See above), the Average Life Expectancy is approximately 40-71 years in the world of Remnant. Because of this lowered life expectancy, larger range of average, and higher danger levels in this world, the people tend to grow up much faster and therefore the Age of Majority is lowered. The reason the Average Life Expectancy has such a large range is because of the constant threat from the grimm.

* * *

Weapons

Crescent Rose – Ruby Rose's High-Caliber Sniper Scythe. Ozpin states that it is one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed. Ruby learned to wield it from her uncle Qrow – a teacher at Signal Academy, Ruby and Yang's previous school.

Myrtenaster – Weiss Schnee's Multi Action Dust Rapier, or MADR. The weapon has a specialized multiple compartment cylinder that can be loaded with dust to augment the weapon's versatility in battle.

Gambol Shroud – Blake Belladonna's weapon that is a combination of pistol and a large knife is similar to a katana. It is dubbed a Variant Ballistic Chain Scythe. Blake uses an elastic ribbon attached to the hilt of the pistol to swing it around and pull the trigger, increasing momentum of the blade. This weapon is seemingly even more difficult and dangerous to use in comparison to Crescent Rose.

Ember Celica – Yang Xiao Long's Dual Ranged Shot Gauntlets. Normally disguised as bracelets, the gauntlets transform and are able to fire propellant dust in both forward and backward directions. The forward firing ability also adds a ranged ability.

Crocea Mors – Jaune Arc's long sword and shield. The shield acts as a sheath for the sword and collapses for a less awkward method of transportation. The only drawback is that it does not get lighter when the shield is collapsed.

Magnhild – Nora Valkyrie's hammer / grenade launcher combo. When in the hammer mode, it fires propellant to increase the force of impact. It can also fire in the opposite direction to launch the hammer off of a surface.

Milo and Akouo – Pyrrha Nikos's javelin / sword / rifle combo and shield. The shield does not transform, while the javelin has a function to fire itself forward much like an unguided missile when not controlled by Pyrrha's semblance.

Stormflower – Lie Ren's dual wield sub machine guns. The weapons feature extended magazines and large collapsible super-hardened blades capable of piercing even the strong armour of a King Taijitu. They are easily concealed within Ren's sleeves.

Melodic Cudgel – Roman Torchwick's signature cane that has a concealed rifle. The cane is made with super-hardened metal and therefore doubles as a mêlée weapon. The weapon is capable of rapid fire and has an output high enough to blow holes in solid concrete.

**Now I think that is about everything, and if I find any more than this, I will update it. Also, I just sort of whipped through this, so if I made any mistakes, let me know. Also I want to thank Roosterteeth and more specifically Monty Oum who created this brilliant series for letting us take his characters and put them in our own playgrounds! Cheers!**

**After Note: As for characters being Out Of Character: I understand, but I am changing them to make them my own (even though I don't own them). An example of this is the complete lack of puns from Yang. I tried, but couldn't get my eye to stop twitching so sorry, no puns!**

**After Note Take 2: As stated at the very top, I wrote this as practice while taking breaks from my actual WIP. As it stands, I have 80,000 words in this Bloody Snow: Volume 1 manuscript and so far (as of July 22nd 2014) about 10,000 in the Volume 2 manuscript. (A quick thanks to the folks at Literature and Latte who made and keep my Scrivener awesome!)**

**IMPORTANT: I put this last because it's important for everyone. I currently have this project rated T. I have already written all 20 chapters that I will release weekly after I edit them. Some chapters (I will place warnings in the author's note at the beginning) may contain content that is rated M. HOWEVER, I will not change the rating on this story until Chapter 8 as that is the first chapter with Intense Violence as defined by the ESRB as"Graphic and realistic-[sounding] depictions of physical conflict. May involve extreme and/or realistic blood, gore, weapons and depictions of human injury and death."**

**On that note, I thank you for dealing with this long boring intro piece, and I hope you enjoy RWBY: Bloody Snow: Though the forest is dark and grimm, We must carry on lest the world be torn asunder: Volume 1.**

**This story will be updated every Wednesday.**


	2. Chapter 1: Arc 1 - White Flower

**Author's Note:**

**Well, here's chapter 1 for everyone! This chapter contains mild violence and two characters going on a date. If for some reason you get wildly offended by a teacher-supervised practice-fight or two awkward people walking around after eating something, then I will ask you to please call your local psychiatrist and not read this. Otherwise, Have fun! (P.S. - I like to mess around like this, so don't go getting offended or anything. I'm just joking.)**

* * *

"Ruby, Weiss, you have the floor."

"Thank you professor." Weiss took her position at the front of the classroom, setting her stance with her Multi Action Dust Rapier, Myrtenaster, held delicately in position to block or attack depending on how her teammate and current opponent Ruby started the match.

"Hey Weiss, good luck!" Ruby called cheerfully as she settled into her combat stance no more than six feet away - just out of the range of her high-impact sniper/scythe combo dubbed Crescent Rose.

"Hmmmph. Luck is for those who don't have skill." Weiss snorted, readjusting her footing ever so slightly.

Before Ruby could respond, Professor Port blew his whistle and both the girls jumped to attack. Ruby fired at the ground to give her height over Weiss and then spun as the white haired girl came into her range.

Weiss twisted with a grace that came from years of experience in one on one combat, easily deflecting Ruby's attack with a tap of her rapier. She summoned a glyph below her feet and pushed off to come face to face with a slightly shocked Ruby.

The next instant, Ruby hit the ground hard. Then stumbled to her feet as Weiss landed gracefully, just out of her range.

"Excellent strike, Weiss!" Professor Port boomed from the sidelines, drawing a satisfied smile out of the heiress. "You must watch your proximity to this one, Ruby."

"Yeah…" Ruby mumbled as she sprang forward at her opponent.

A few rose petals floated to the ground as Ruby disappeared from in front of Weiss. Weiss had worked with Ruby and watched her technique long enough to know the girl was going for her back. She didn't even turn as she made two glyphs. One at her back which reverberated with a clanging noise as the scythe bit into the black glyph, and the other at her feet, launching her into the air to land on a third glyph on the ceiling.

Ruby tried to pull her scythe out of the glyph, but it was stuck. Weiss had obviously thought of that when she'd summoned it. Looking up, she saw Weiss smile before launching off the ceiling straight at her. Ruby swung under the staff of her useless scythe and let go to fly weaponless at Weiss. She felt a sickening crunch under her feet before she hit the ground hard.

Stars flashed before both Weiss and Ruby's eyes as they tried to recover from the disastrous exchange. The glyph holding onto Crescent Rose disappeared as Weiss got back to her feet.

Ruby snatched up her scythe and prepared for another attack. Weiss stood in her usual elegant fencing stance, panting slightly from the effort of using so many glyphs in such a short time.

"I think this match is too even. Let's spice things up a little!" Professor Port announced jovially as he opened a cage beside his desk, which burst open to reveal what looked like a really hungry Boarbatusk.

"Darn!" Weiss spat as she narrowly avoided being trampled to the ground as the creature whipped past. Ruby saw her chance and sprang at Weiss, twirling her scythe at an amazing speed. She barely held off the onslaught of the large curved blade as the creature of grimm locked onto them and started its charge again.

Just as the creature was about to collide with the battling pair, Weiss used a glyph to throw Ruby across the room. Not a split second later, as Ruby flew through the air, she caught a glimpse of Weiss getting plowed down by the wild grimm. A loud cracking noise echoed in the room as Weiss landed on her right arm.

The noise drew a gasp from Yang, Pyrrha, and Blake who were riveted by the lively duel. Nora snapped back from her daydream and had to ask Ren what had happened as Jaune covered his mouth to keep him from puking in response to the sick feeling the crack had put into his stomach. The whole of team CRDL was laughing and a few other teams were on the edge of jumping into the fray. It was like that every time a grimm was set loose in the room. Not a single person cared for them, even as practice animals.

Ruby landed and immediately went to help Weiss who was in the process of trying to keep away from the Boarbatusk and retrieve her weapon that she'd dropped when it had run into her. From looking, you could see that she was hurt. A slight limp was evident, as well as her right arm that hung stiffly at her side. Her old scar had also split open and her left eye was constantly blinking blood out of the way.

Seeing Ruby a second before she got there, Weiss made her move, jumping into the air and using her glyphs to land beside Myrtenaster just as the Boarbatusk charged her. Weiss aimed toward the creature as she activated the fire dust on the hilt of Myrtenaster, sending out a small fireball. The creature screeched as its tough horns caught fire and jumped as it continued to close the distance between itself and Weiss.

Time slowed as the adrenaline pumped through Weiss's veins. She summoned another glyph just as she had on the first day of class and the creature bounced off it and landed on its back just as Ruby's Scythe came a little too close to Weiss's head and flew past, embedding itself into the capsized grimm.

"Ha!" Ruby exclaimed and looked at Weiss with a smile on her face.

"I agree." Weiss said as she gently placed the edge of Myrtenaster on Ruby's neck.

"Wha-?" The younger girl gasped in confusion as to why Weiss was holding her at the tip of her sword.

"Well done, Weiss! You should learn from your teammate, Ruby! The match between you two continued even after the grimm was released into the fray!" Professor Port boomed as he approached the two and Weiss sheathed her weapon. Ruby pulled her own out of the grimm and folded it back into the compact gun she carried on her back before replacing it on her belt. "That is all for today's class. Read chapter two and the first part of three that mentions strategy for next class. You are dismissed."

The professor walked away as Yang and Blake rushed up, followed closely by JNPR.

"Are you okay, Weiss?" Blake said as she stopped beside them.

"I am fine." Weiss said as she brushed a wrinkle out of her sleeve and readjusted her skirt. "A bit tired, but fine."

"After suffering and healing a broken bone, your aura is normally drained completely." Pyrrha said knowledgeably as she approached.

"At least this was our last class today." Jaune supplied as he came to a stop beside Ruby. If Weiss didn't know better, she'd say the two seemed to lean towards each other slightly.

"Well, if that is the case, I am going to bed. Goodnight." Weiss said as she left the group to walk slowly back to their dorms.

"I better go, or I'll be late. See you guys!" Blake said as they exited the class. She pulled the bow from her hair to free the small black cat ears that the strip of cloth normally covered.

"Oh! Say hi to Sun for me!" Yang piped up as Blake headed for the balcony.

"Sure thing. I'm out!" She said as she jumped off the balcony and disappeared into the growing darkness outside the school.

Winter was coming, and the days seemed to get increasingly shorter until it was now only light during classes. The air had chilled considerably also and the leaves were starting to change color.

"We're going to go for a walk. Does anyone want to tag along?" Ren asked as Nora hopped around him, pulling at his sleeve and impatiently humming.

"No thank you." Pyrrha said as she checked her scroll and opened a list she'd made.

"I'm heading to the gym." Yang stated as she donned her aviators and readjusted her gauntlets.

"See you later!" Nora said as Ren finally started to follow her.

"Well, it's just the three of us then." Ruby said as the group continued to walk aimlessly down the corridor.

"Actually, I have an assignment I haven't finished yet due tomorrow. I'll see you guys later." Pyrrha said sadly as she put away her scroll and started to walk away.

"Bye." Jaune said a bit awkwardly as he watched Pyrrha walk away.

"Sooo, whatcha wanna talk about?" Ruby asked as Jaune turned his attention back to the hall. Being two years younger than everyone else, Ruby's natural social awkwardness often seemed amplified.

"I dunno…" Jaune said slowly. "How about that match?"

"Heh. It was pretty bad wasn't it?"

"I don't know really, I was trying to keep my lunch down for most of it." He said with a small grimace and a shiver as he remembered the crack of Weiss's arm.

"But lunch was hours ago." Ruby laughed as her stomach told her it was hungry with a loud growl.

"I've never really been good seeing other people break things." Jaune admitted as his stomach growled too. "Wanna grab something to eat?"

"Sure." Ruby said. Then an awkward thought occurred to her and a heavy blush forced its way onto her face.

"What?" Jaune asked as he saw Ruby turn pink.

"Is… is this a date?" Ruby asked in return as the shade of her face deepened to red.

"Uh… sure… well, only if you want it to be… I mean…" Jaune stuttered as he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Okay. It's a date." Ruby said with a smile, cutting Jaune off so he wouldn't keep mumbling. "Sooo, where are we going?"

"I dunno, how about Vale? Or we could just grab something from the cafeteria…" Jaune suggested, not knowing what Ruby would expect him to do.

"I'm good with the cafeteria food if you are."

"Okay. Lets go before they close."

* * *

Ruby and Jaune arrived at the cafeteria with five minutes to spare. The faunus behind the counter looked at them with a mixture of anger and boredom as she quickly took their orders. Ruby ordered a plate of cookies because she wasn't in the mood for actual food and Jaune ordered a burger. They left to eat in the hallway as the cashier followed them to lock the doors so nobody else would come in.

They ate in an awkward silence because neither one knew what to talk about. After they had finished and put their plates in the wash bin on top of a nearby garbage, they started walking around the school again.

Eventually, they came to the doors that led to the courtyard that was more like a nature preserve than an actual courtyard. The doors burst open and Ren appeared carrying Nora on his back piggyback style.

"Hey guys!" Nora called from Ren's back and jumped off her friend. "It's finally snowing! Can you believe it? I can't believe it! It just started, like ten minutes ago and I started to get cold so Ren said we should go inside and I said he'd have to make me, so I ended up riding him! And that sounded wrong. But- hey! Are you guys on a date? That's sooo cute! I knew you'd get a girlfriend Jaune!"

"I think they'd want to be alone if it was a date, Nora." Ren said pointedly as he continued walking, grabbing Nora's arm in the process to drag her away.

"Ohhh! Right! Sorry, guys. See ya later!" Nora yelled, as she continued to struggle against Ren's hold.

"Bye Nora." Ruby said as the couple rounded the corner. Ruby turned back to Jaune who was looking toward the doors.

"Wanna take a walk?" Jaune asked as he offered his arm to Ruby like the gentleman he was trying to portray.

"Aha… okay." Ruby answered with a nervous laugh as she took his arm a bit awkwardly. It felt weird to touch him like that - as if she was his girlfriend. _Why does that thought… never mind_. She thought as they walked up to the doors.

The couple exited the doors and the view shocked the breath out of both of them. The dark sky was even darker than normal and the few lights along the path illuminated the large white snowflakes that fell slowly, drifting in lazy spirals onto the already white ground. Everything was covered by a dusting of the flakes and the lights made everything sparkle majestically in the dark.

"Wow…" Ruby breathed as she released a breath she didn't know she was holding. "It's beautiful!"

Jaune let out a whistle as he started walking again, pulling Ruby along.

The couple made it to the center of the park. Ruby had forgotten she was holding onto Jaune's arm and Jaune seemed too amazed by the beauty of the glistening snow to acknowledge Ruby's stiff grip on his arm.

After a minute or so, Ruby shivered and Jaune snapped back to the present.

"Are you cold? We should probably go back inside." He said as he looked around at their almost completely vanished tracks in the snow.

"Huh?" Ruby asked as she snapped out of her own world.

"Are you cold?" Jaune repeated.

"A bit. But it's fine. I just haven't seen snow like this since…" She trailed off as a memory came back to her mind. She shook her head and instead continued. "I haven't seen snow like this for a while. You're right, it is cold. Lets go back inside."

The couple headed back inside and Ruby stifled a yawn while Jaune brushed snow off his shoulders. They started to head back to the dorms.

The silence stretched as Ruby had escaped into her own mind, and Jaune into his. They actually passed the dorms before either one picked up that they had. Upon turning around and stopping beside Ruby's door, Ruby broke the silence.

"Well… this is it I guess." She said as she swayed forward and back on her tiptoes. "That was fun, Jaune."

"Yeah… it was." He responded awkwardly. They looked into each others eyes and Jaune finally caught on to what she was expecting. "Well, goodnight Ruby."

Jaune leaned forward and Ruby did the same. Their noses bumped awkwardly and they both snapped back from their lean. They tried to hug but they awkwardly flailed for a moment as they tried to get their arms around each other. In the end, Jaune took a step back and held out his hand. His face was as red, if not more so than Ruby's and Ruby finally managed to say something out of her embarrassment.

"G-goodnight Jaune, see you later." She took his hand in a simple handshake, pumping it once and rushing into her room and slamming the door.

She leaned against it and collapsed to the floor with her head in her hands, revelling in the embarrassment. She heard a door close across the hall and realized Jaune had gone into his own team's dorm.

"How was the date, Sis?" Yang said as she sprang off her bed and stood beside Ruby.

"I… it was… okay?" The answer sounded like a question. And the coughing of Weiss echoed in the room as she turned over in her sleep so she was facing the sisters.

"Come on, sis, it couldn't have been that bad. You like Jaune, remember?"

"We barely talked and then when we went outside, the snow reminded me of Mom." Ruby said as she rubbed her eyes in frustration. "I couldn't tell him about it, you know?"

"It's okay, Rubes. I'm sure it wasn't as bad as you're making it sound. It must have ended good the way I heard you two grappling outside!" Yang said with a smile and a wink as she reached down to help Ruby to her feet.

"Ugh… we didn't even kiss! It was just awkward, and we ended up shaking hands." Ruby said and she smacked herself on the forehead muttering "Stupid!" over and over until Yang caught her wrist, which was a feat in itself considering the speed at which Ruby was moving.

"Okay, so it was bad… not as bad as my last one, but still bad." Yang said and was rewarded with a laugh from Ruby as she remembered the one and only date Yang had been on which ended with her sending the unlucky boy to the hospital after he'd tried to make a move on her.

"You're right, it wasn't that bad. At least he still has all his limbs." Ruby laughed as she changed into her night clothes. She was past being embarrassed in front of her sister. And was thankful that the other two were asleep. "I don't think he's really my type though…"

"Well, I could've told you that!" Yang said as she jumped back into her bed. "You two are… I don't know how to explain it - just not a good match, I guess."

"Well thanks for telling me that before hand!"

"Hey, some things you just have to figure out on your own." Yang said as Ruby walked up to her and Weiss's bunk beds. Weiss seemed to be having a good dream by the wide smile on her face. As Ruby approached, it seemed that a blush was starting on Weiss's face. She turned over and away from Ruby as she stepped on the edge of her bed and lifted herself up to her own hanging bunk.

"Just out of curiosity, who would I be a good match with?"

"Don't worry, I'm sure there's someone for you." Yang replied reassuringly.

"Goodnight Yang." Ruby said. She pushed the memory of the date into the back of her mind. "And thanks."

"Night Sis."

* * *

**End Note:**

**Thank you for reading, I have 2 announcements to make quickly before you go. Firstly, I have a problem with chapter 20 in this story, and I've decided everyone has until chapter 10 is released to weigh in on their opinion. I have posted the poll on my profile and I'm basically asking which of two alternate endings to use in Volume 1. I'm not leaning either way, so I'll let you wonderful people choose. And lastly, this is my first work that I'm actually putting out for public consumption, so please let me know what you liked, hated, loved, etc.**

**See you next Wednesday when I post Chapter 2! **


	3. Chapter 2: Arc 1 - White Flower

**Author's Note:**

**First off, let me clarify something that I didn't understand (and probably still dont). The four characters I list are the main characters for the _CURRENT _chapter. Meaning, if the chapter deals with all of team RWBY, and they take up most of the dialogue and actions, then Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang will be listed (I'm sure you can figure how that would mean it changes chapter by chapter.). Anyway, someone pointed out that I marked it Jaune X Ruby, but it came across as a hint towards Ruby X Weiss. I hope this will clear that up.**

**Second, a giant thank you to everyone who favourited and followed. This is my first fan-fiction, and I didn't expect to get so much support so early on. Thank you.**

**So at last the standard what's-in-this-chapter spiel. This chapter contains the most offensive yogurt you'll (n)ever see. Also, various pieces of fruit (lemons not included) and some vanilla wafers are brutally eaten with extreme prejudice. This chapter also contains the introduction of one of my major pairings. Also lyrics are from songs by Jeff Williams that can be found on the RWBY official soundtrack. I don't own any of the rights to RWBY or the songs I took the lyrics from.**

* * *

_Thank god it is a day off!_ That thought was the first coherent thing that ran through Weiss's mind as she came out of her sleep and felt how stiff her body was. Even with the healing properties of her aura, she still felt like she'd been hit by a truck.

She noticed the light in the room was already starting to dim, which meant it was already late into the day. "Ugh!" she grunted as she sat up and attempted to stretch her muscles out.

"Oh, hey Weiss! I was starting to worry you might be dead." Ruby said cheerfully as she jumped down from her bunk, a small text book in her hand. She put it onto the room's only desk and turned to face her roommate.

"Sorry to disappoint." Weiss mumbled sarcastically as she heard rather than felt her back give a crack that sent tingles up and down her whole body, eliciting a shiver. "That sounded cringe inducing."

"Sort of, but I was about the same this morning too. I guess Professor Port wasn't kidding when he said we'd make a good match." Ruby joked, not realizing the double entendre her statement caused to spring into Weiss's mind.

"My back disagrees." Weiss said as she got up and headed off to the bathroom. She ignored the sudden unwanted thought, attributing it to her overtired mind.

Weiss stood under the scalding water that fell from the shower head for what felt like hours until her muscles finally started to relax and undo their knots. Afterwards, she dressed in her relaxing clothes - a simple tank top and a soft skirt because she hated the movement restrictions her pants had.

She walked back to an empty room and pulled out the work Professor Port had assigned. It was no sooner that she'd finished the reading that a loud bang at the door almost made her fall out of her bed in surprise.

"Learn to knock!" Weiss yelled as she righted herself and started for the door as the loud bang repeated itself multiple times in a slow succession. "I'm coming!"

She opened the door to a Ruby who was carrying five massive white plastic bags. Two were looped over each arm and one hung from her mouth. A red patch on her forehead told Weiss how she'd managed to knock on the door. Ruby rushed into the room and dropped the bags onto the desk. She then simply collapsed onto the floor as her breath came in gasps.

"What is all this?" Weiss asked as she closed the door and walked gracefully over to the pile of food.

"Party…" Ruby gasped in between breaths and then quit trying to explain. To be honest, Weiss didn't need her to. The Large square foam boxes were a standard occurrence in the dorm when one of the girls was upset, which seemed to be more often than not, especially when Ruby and Weiss were constantly fighting at the beginning of the semester.

"What happened?" Weiss asked as a foggy memory came to her mind from the night before - something about the door slamming and Ruby walking toward her after saying something good… she couldn't remember anything else.

"Me and Jaune decided to just stay friends… because we both didn't really feel that way about each other even if we thought we did." Ruby said as she finally started to regain her ability to talk.

"Then why are we eating more than team CRDL?" Weiss asked her usual question when a mountain of food appeared in the room.

"Because we're celebrating the first day off!" Ruby said as she jumped up and started pulling the containers from the bags.

Ruby stacked the five boxes according to their contents and took one to hand it to Weiss. Upon opening it, Weiss saw it was packed full of fruit. Strawberries to be precise.

"Ruby, I think this is yours." Weiss said as she held the container out for Ruby.

"Oh yeah. Sorry." She responded as she opened a few others to display a random assortment of citrus fruits in one and berries in another. The last one contained a divider between white yogurt and some plain looking wafers. "This is yours."

She spun with the yogurt tray in her hand and collided with the tray of strawberries Weiss was holding out, causing a few to fall to the floor and a few more to land in the yogurt.

For a second, she looked at Weiss with obvious fear in her eyes as Weiss put the strawberry tray on the table and inspected the damage. She looked up, meeting Ruby's eyes with her own and suddenly both girls burst out at the same time.

"I'm sorry. I'll get you another one!" Ruby said as fast as she could to avoid the explosion she was expecting from Weiss, her eyes closing anticipating at least a smack for her carelessness.

"That looks good…" Weiss said as she turned her attention back to the strawberries covered in vanilla yogurt.

"What?" Ruby said as she opened one eye to look at Weiss warily.

"I said it looks good." She responded as she picked a strawberry out of the yogurt, carefully rolling it to avoid making a mess. She slowly brought it to her mouth and took a bite. Her lips were coated in the yogurt as she chewed slowly, savouring the rich taste of the fresh fruit mixed with her favourite yogurt. "Mmmm…" She moaned as she licked her lips and dipped the fruit back into the tray before them. "I was right. Try one."

"I thought you hated strawberries!" Ruby exclaimed as she carefully picked one out of the yogurt, mimicking the rolling motion that Weiss performed so expertly.

"Not everyone likes a 2-1 sugar and strawberry mix you know." Weiss said as she broke the green stem off the berry and popped the rest into her mouth.

"How do you not like sugar?" Ruby asked as she took a bite out of her strawberry and she suddenly saw what Weiss was talking about. The berry was a little tart, but in the yogurt it was one of the best things she'd ever tasted. She grabbed her tray of berries and set the yogurt one down on the table. "Do you mind?"

"Go ahead." Was all Weiss said as she turned back to her bed. She made it up with a simple flick of her blanket and sat off to one side of the headboard.

Ruby had mixed the berries carefully with the yogurt to make sure they were all about equally covered and turned to face Weiss. She was sitting in her bed, her legs crossed as she leaned against the headboard. Ruby froze with one foot in the air. She distinctly remembered the threat that Weiss had uttered the one day that Ruby had 'accidentally' fallen on top of her sleeping form after a fight with Yang. How she'd slept through the yelling in the fight was beyond Ruby, but she had been very angry when she'd woken to find Ruby in her lap.

"Come on, grab a pillow." Weiss said as she patted the empty space beside her. _Either I'm going crazy or just stupid._ The thought flashed across her mind before Ruby responded.

"Are you sure? I mean… you wanted to kill me last time I was in your bed." Ruby asked cautiously.

"You woke me up by bludgeoning me with your body! I don't think those circumstances really apply here." Weiss said with a half smile at the fact that Ruby remembered her warning.

"If you're sure…"

"Just grab a pillow and get over here or I'll revoke my invitation!" Weiss said with a huff, making her bounce on the bed slightly.

Ruby gave Weiss the tray of food and jumped up to grab her pillow off the mess of her bed. She placed it the same way Weiss had, so it kept her back away from the wooden frame. Once she was settled, Weiss offered the tray back to Ruby. She grabbed a berry and popped it into her mouth.

Weiss took a berry and placed it on a wafer before taking a bite. Ruby waited for her to swallow before asking. "Does it taste good with the wafer?"

"Try it." Weiss said, holding out her half eaten wafer and berry for Ruby to try.

Ruby blushed a little, thrown off at the sudden change between the icy Weiss and this new, albeit scary, warm Weiss. She took the food from Weiss, who waited, watching as Ruby took a tentative bite from the same end that Weiss had bitten into. "Mmm. Das gut." Ruby said through her mouthful of food and Weiss frowned in response, then let out a single short laugh at her ridiculous teammate.

Ruby was completely shocked. She'd never heard a single laugh escape the stony faced heiress in the few weeks they'd known each other. It was actually a nice, sort of tinkling sound. She swallowed her food quickly and handed the wafer back to Weiss.

Ruby's face felt like it was glowing and she started to get up and do something, she didn't know what - just something, when Weiss's hand touched the top of her thigh. She gasped at the contact, surprised by the sudden contact from the girl who always kept her distance from everyone, especially her.

"Weiss…"

"Yes, Ruby?" Weiss answered innocently. _Yup. Probably crazy._

"Wha- what are you doing?"

"I'm keeping you from running away from me." Weiss said simply and took her hand away from Ruby's leg.

"Why would I-?" Ruby said. Her head was buzzing unhelpfully at all the information it was receiving.

Weiss said nothing as she finished the wafer, thus finishing the tray. She closed the box and tossed it to the floor where a few other boxes were already lying, waiting to be thrown out.

Ruby, not knowing what to do, settled back onto the bed, her shoulder brushing Weiss's. She felt the muscles in the other girl clench for a moment before relaxing again. Weiss was breathing strange as if her heart rate was above normal.

"Are you okay?" Ruby asked cautiously, wondering what had happened to the other girl.

"Perfect." Weiss said as she relaxed into her pillow even more, her eyes closing as she made an effort to control her pulse. _What in the world is wrong with me today?_

Just then the door opened and Yang's voice stopped mid sentence. Ruby jumped up from Weiss's bed and backed into the table between the beds under the window, making a pile of books cascade to the floor. At the noise, Weiss's eyes snapped back open to see Yang saying something to someone in the hall. _Just go away._ Weiss thought as if she could control the bouncy blond with her mind.

Yang closed the door and spun. A roguish smile plastered across her face. "So, what have you two been up to all day?" She asked with a laugh as she grabbed her jacket off the end of her bed.

Ruby started to stutter something unintelligible that had a lot of I's, me's and a few Weiss's and ended with yogurt strawberry.

Yang just laughed and responded. "Well, I have a feeling I'll find out later anyway. Just don't ruin my little sister, Weiss! I'm out!"

She carefully opened the door and left while making sure whoever was outside didn't get a look into the room. From the rumbling voice that greeted her, it could only be a guy.

Ruby was still standing up against the table, breathing as if she'd sprinted a mile in ten seconds. Weiss was still too stunned by what had just happened to even move. Both girls just stayed where they were, the silence heavy between them. After a while, they looked at each other and Ruby saw something she hadn't expected. Weiss looked terrified.

Ruby spun around, looking to see what Weiss was staring at, but saw nothing. Turning back, her eyes settled on Weiss's and she knew Weiss's terror was aimed at her. Weiss swung her legs down from the bed as if she was about to run and Ruby moved slightly to block the way out of the room.

Once again, they both tried to speak at the same time.

"Ruby, I'm sorry!"

"Weiss, where are-"

"Your sister-"

"Why are you-"

"I couldn't help-"

"But Yang didn't-"

At this point, Ruby just held up a hand and Weiss stopped trying to explain. Ruby looked into Weiss's eyes, searching. Ruby took a deep breath and exhaled shakily, a smile appearing on her face.

"You know, Yang's probably going to tell everyone we're a couple. Or something along those lines at least." Ruby said with a small giggle, finding the situation quite humorous.

Either way Weiss could answer, she saw herself as screwed. She couldn't just ask Ruby if that was such a bad thing because then she'd have to deal with the rejection, and she couldn't deny it because she really did like Ruby, even though she didn't act like it most times. At very least, she was wasn't quite sure of those feelings yet. _Yes. Definitely crazy. Capital Z._

From her silence, Ruby seemed to guess what was going on and her face turned redder than Weiss had thought possible. The situation had gotten awkward fast. Weiss jumped up and ran for the washroom, her hair a white trail behind her. She slammed the door and turned on the shower to drown out the sound of her crying. She knew Ruby would reject her and she was also sure that she wouldn't be able to take it since Ruby was in fact, her first real friend.

Weiss felt her hair friz from the heat wafting from the shower, but she didn't care. Ruby was, believe it or not, the first person to see her as an actual person, not just some heiress to the world's richest company: just a statue to maintain. But with Ruby, there was something else. She was always trying to prove to Weiss that she was good enough, and in the past few weeks, she'd gotten better at everything since the initiation. Weiss hadn't said anything, but she was proud that Ruby was constantly improving. She had a faint idea that she was constantly pushing out of her head that Ruby was working so hard to get her approval. Not to mention, Ruby was really, really cute. _What in the world am I thinking? If it turns out I am gay, my father will kill me!_

"Mirror, Mirror, tell me something…" Weiss trailed off as she surfaced from her thoughts. Immediately she stopped singing the song she hadn't noticed she'd even started to sing out of habit. The sound of the falling water was starting to get annoying, so she shut it off and what she heard in response was surprising.

From the other side of the door, Ruby's voice was softly singing. Except Weiss had never heard her sing, she'd only guessed she would have a good voice judging by the pitch of her normal voice.

"Don't be disappointed… don't let your heart break… don't spend another minute in this way… it's o-kay." Ruby sang slowly, just loud enough to be heard through the door of the washroom. Intrigued, Weiss slowly headed toward the door, opening it a crack to let more of the melodious sound reach her ears. "Dry your eyes now, baby… broken wings won't hold you down…"

Weiss opened the door and stepped out as she wiped the tears out of her eyes. Ruby stopped singing and almost tackled Weiss in a hug before forcing her to resume her seat on her bed. Ruby kept her arm curled around her back, her hand on Weiss's side, keeping her in place.

"Are you okay, Weiss?" Ruby asked gently, almost cautiously as if she was afraid Weiss would run away again.

"What song were you singing?" Weiss answered with a question of her own.

"Oh, it was nothing, just a song my mom used to sing when I was upset." She answered, turning her head away. "I didn't realize you heard me."

"Ruby, it was really good. You have a good voice." Weiss said, turning her head away this time as some part of her brain asked why she was being nice to his red-headed source of frustration.

"Well, thanks Weiss. You have a good voice too. I mean- I heard you singing in the washroom." Ruby finished lamely as she blushed a light shade of red.

Weiss didn't respond. She knew what song she had been singing, and she was somewhat embarrassed that she'd sang the one song she often sang in her most isolated times at White Castle loud enough for Ruby to hear. Especially after the events right before she ran away to the washroom. She felt her face burn and knew she must have had one killer blush turning her face red.

Ruby didn't seem to mind as she continued on her obviously thought out list of questions. "Can we go through what happened earlier?"

Weiss couldn't find her voice, so she just nodded. She had resigned herself to the fact that this would go one way or another and there was no stopping to get off the train at this point. _This would have happened sooner or later anyway. It's not like I have done anything in my life to deserve friends._

"Why were you scared? And why did you run away from me?" She asked, realizing the questions were most likely related.

"I-" Weiss began, but just then, the door swung open and Yang bounded into the room.

"I knew it!" She squealed with delight as Blake came in behind her. Upon seeing the other half of her team, Blake grabbed Yang's arm and pulled her out of the room as Yang started to protest.

She closed the door and must have dragged Yang down the hall by the sound of the complaints that penetrated the walls, getting quieter every second.

Ruby looked at Weiss and burst into nervous giggles as Weiss looked away, her lip trembling as fresh tears threatened to come pouring out. Ruby noticed this, and shifted so she could comfort her teammate and Weiss accepted the hug, with an unwanted feeling of anticipation. She berated herself mentally for foolishly getting her hopes up. Whatever those hopes might be.

Weiss's tears disappeared slowly from crying to be replaced by hysterical laughing as she realized how completely ridiculous her situation was. Sitting on her bed, hugging the girl who had sparked an inexplicable storm of emotions while the same girl's sister was most likely spreading the word that Ruby and Weiss were a couple. On top of it all, Ruby still had no idea what was running through Weiss's mind. It was just so beautifully messed up, it was hilarious.

Weiss was laughing so hard that she had a stitch in her side and Ruby had started looking scared as she disentangled herself from Weiss who collapsed on the bed, trying to stop laughing and crying and catch her breath. It seemed a pointless battle as Ruby gave her a little more space by getting up to stand beside Weiss's bed.

Once Weiss had finally calmed down enough to catch her breath, Ruby tried again. "Weiss, are you okay?"

"Not in the slightest!" Weiss answered as another round of hysterical laughter broke through and she doubled up at the pain that stabbed her chest. "Ow! Oh, that hurts!" She managed to force through her giggles.

"Weiss, you need to tell me what's bothering you. I can't help if I have no idea what I'm helping with." Ruby said as she moved a little closer to the bed. Less afraid of Weiss now than she had been a few seconds ago.

"It's you, Ruby Rose." Weiss said and a bark of laughter came out of Weiss's mouth. "I am so tired right now."

"Well, I'll just leave you alone then…" Ruby said dejectedly as she turned to leave.

"No! Ruby, wait!" Weiss called, suddenly serious, all the laughter suddenly gone from her voice. "I didn't mean that, its just-"

"What, Weiss? What is it just?" Ruby spun, angrily to come face to face with Weiss. She was tired of trying to meet the girl's expectations. Either Weiss would let her help, or she wouldn't. She wasn't running around trying to impress her any longer.

Weiss was surprised by the unintended proximity, but she decided that the easiest way to resolve this fiasco of a day was to just take a leap and hope Ruby caught her.

Weiss thought hard, pushing her feelings around, trying to figure out what came next. Her brain was being unhelpful and presented her with a single option. _What in the world am I thinking? Nothing good, that's for sure._ She conceded defeat to her mind's urge as it forced its way into action.

Weiss leaned toward Ruby, making sure their eyes kept contact until the last moment when she tilted her head, closed her eyes and removed the last inch of space.

Ruby's lips were soft and warm. They pressed together, before relaxing and parting slightly. Weiss mirrored Ruby's movement, pressing her lips tighter and running her tongue along the girls lip.

Ruby shivered as they broke apart. Weiss was breathing as if she had run a mile and Ruby seemed to have forgotten she needed oxygen as they looked into each others eyes. They just stood there for a minute, before Weiss was overcome with her fear of Ruby's impending rejection.

"I'm sorry, Ruby. I… it won't happen again." She said as she turned back to her bed, just wanting to bury herself in the covers and hide from the world and its cruel jokes.

Ruby was still standing in a state of shock at what had just happened. As the meaning of everything started to click, an anger the likes of which she'd only ever felt once before flared bright and hot. "Weiss Schnee! Don't you dare fucking run away from me!"

The tone and volume of Ruby's voice stopped Weiss mid step. She had never heard Ruby mad enough to swear before, but at this point she was too tired to fight. _So bring it._ She thought as she slowly turned to face Ruby.

Ruby's face was neutral as she approached Weiss. She stopped much too close for Weiss's comfort as the two maintained eye contact. Ruby's silver eyes seemed to shine, sparkling in the low light cast from a lamp on Ruby's bunk.

Slowly, Ruby leaned closer and Weiss felt her heart jump and start racing faster than it ever had before, leaving her breathless.

"Is that how you really feel about me?" Ruby whispered, her voice nothing but a breath of wind in the silent and still room.

"Yes." Was all the air in Weiss's lungs could strangle out past the massive knot that had formed in her throat, her emotions finally compiling themselves together neatly. _And of course this couldn't have happened before now._ She pushed the sarcastic thought out of the way to focus on what Ruby had to say in response.

"I had hoped I wasn't the only one." Ruby breathed a sigh of relief. The lingering smell of the vanilla yogurt and strawberries wafted in the air and Weiss was oddly comforted by the smell as the surprise of the girl's statement registered.

"Then kiss me again, you dolt!" Weiss commanded, fearing that it was just a cruel joke Ruby was playing on her. _Cause why would anyone like me? I am difficult to get along with, and to my knowledge I haven't given her any reason to like me._

To her surprise, Ruby closed the space, shutting her eyes and wrapping her arms around Weiss in a firm, yet tender hug as their lips met for the second time. This kiss was different than the first. It was just as tender as the first, but this time, Ruby wasn't holding back. The kiss was fiery and sweet and tender and breathtaking. Weiss's head was swimming from the sensory overload and the couple collapsed onto Weiss's bed.

Even after being pulled onto the soft sheets of Weiss's bed, Ruby didn't break the kiss and the girls moved to be more comfortable on the small twin sized mattress. Weiss pulled the covers over them and they broke their kiss, both girls were extremely tired from the complicatedly simple events of the day and the heat of their companionship was quickly slowing their breathing to a crawl as sleep crept up on them with tenderly calming fingers.

"Ruby?" Weiss mumbled as she fell into the place just before sleep where you can't tell if it's real or if you're dreaming.

"Hmm?" Ruby grunted, as she also started her descent into the foggy wakeful dream-state.

"That was my first kiss." Weiss grumbled, cuddling closer to Ruby's warm body.

"Oh." Ruby replied, surprise breaking through the fog to register in her brain for a moment before fading into nothingness. "It was my first kiss too."

Weiss was equally surprised but was too tired to care. Instead she said "Thank you, Ruby."

Weiss placed a gentle kiss on Ruby's lips. Before falling the rest of the way into dreamland, she had one last thought. _My father is going to kill me._

Ruby enjoyed the warm, soft contact on her lips and smiled as she too fell asleep.

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**End Note:**

**Once again, thanks for reading. The poll is still up on my profile and can go either way. So far I'm planning to leave it up till chapter 10 which will be the half way point. Please choose which of the two alternate endings you want because I will only be publishing one!**

**See you next Wednesday for Chapter 3!**


	4. Chapter 3: Arc 1 - White Flower

**Author's Note:**

**This is the last chapter in the first arc of my story, and chapter 3, which means that the next chapter has a special bonus (No, I won't spoil the surprise... yet). As I already stated, its rated T until chapter 8 (probably), if that is a valid hint, then there you go.**

**A big thank you to everyone who followed and favourited! I hope you like the end of the first arc! And as always, if you want to let me know about anything that bothers you, please let me know. This is only my first published work, so I'd like constructive input if you have it.**

**Anyway, this chapter contains Ruby's more mature side, Yang being Yang, and Blake watching all this because she has actually read all the books she took out from the library (but don't tell the rest of the team that!). Also, please be advised that flying books (especially hard backs over 300 pages in length) are very dangerous, despite what you might think with your ninja dodging skills.**

**Lastly, this chapter contains elements of winter. If you don't know what it feels like to be outside in a t-shirt in minus 25 degree celcius weather with a north wind blowing, then don't complain about my physics. I'm from Canada. I survive winters that last longer than any other season.**

* * *

Ruby opened her eyes. The white cloud she lay on was warm and soft, but something about it was off. It didn't smell like clouds, or at least what she imagined clouds to smell like. It was a sort of mix of strawberries and dairy. Yogurt, she guessed from the hint of vanilla and something else. She closed her eyes again and took a deep breath of the intoxicating scent. It sent a shiver down her spine and she pulled the blankets tighter around her as she breathed out slowly.

The memories from the previous night slowly came flooding back, first with a sense of pure fear, and then with unbidden excitement attached to that fear. What would she say to Yang? What would she tell Blake? Hell, she didn't even know what to say to herself at this point!

_Too many thoughts for too early in the morning_. She opened her eyes again, this time seeing Weiss's bed, not a cloud. It took her less than a second to realize that she was the only one in the bed, but not in the room.

The crinkle of pages as a book was thrown across the room sounded as a frustrated sigh came from the table that had held their food the previous day. Another sigh, this one a bit less frustrated came from the other set of bunks in the room.

"If you're going to throw the text book every time you get stuck, you aren't going to get unstuck!" Blake advised from her perch on Yang's bed as she snapped her hardcover book closed and jumped lightly to the floor.

"Well, it makes me feel better." Yang pouted as she went to retrieve her textbook.

"Maybe it'll really help you feel better if you just get it done so you aren't stuck here all day." Blake said, getting frustrated as she picked up one of the foam containers from a stack of them on the floor beside the desk.

"But it's Saturday! Why do I have to have it done by tomorrow?" Yang whined as she sat back down.

"Because it was you who got into trouble by kicking that boys butt." Blake stated simply, popping a berry into her mouth.

"What?" Ruby piped up accidentally as she sat bolt upright.

"Look who's awake - the girl who melted the ice princess!" Yang teased, causing Blake to smack her in the back of her head for her lack of tact. "So, details, little sis. I need to hear it!"

"Leave her alone." Blake said as she got into her own bed this time and picked up her book again.

"So, Ruby… who kissed who first? And how was _it_?" Yang asked as she leaned closer in the chair so she could stop Ruby from running.

"I really don't want to talk about this to you right now. Or ever." Ruby added as an afterthought as she got up. Yang sprang to her feet and blocked Ruby's path to the washroom.

"I don't think I can accept that!" Her mouth was in the evil smile it had before they usually ended up fighting.

"Then why don't you tell her about your evening first?" Blake suggested as she turned a page.

Ruby saw the line Blake threw and grabbed onto it as the memory of Blake's earlier comment came back to her. "Yeah, tell me about your date that you kept in the hall."

Like the push of a button, Yang's face instantly changed from the usual pale white to the same shade as Ruby's cloak. "It was… okay…"

"It was a disaster." Blake intervened to keep Yang on the truthful path.

"We ate dinner and that's it…" Yang continued, eyeing Blake with a look that clearly promised pain.

"You ate and went for a walk in the courtyard." Blake amended again, clearly not afraid of Yang and thoroughly enjoying herself.

"The walk went fine!" Yang said, panic heavy in her tone of voice.

"Until…" Blake prompted as Ruby watched Yang shifting uncomfortably in frustration.

"We had an argument. And I hit him." Yang said.

"How many times?" Blake asked.

"A few…" Yang said, trying to be evasive again.

"Dozen." The last word was aimed at Ruby and the meaning of the whole conversation collapsed into her mind with sudden clarity. A smile forced its way onto her face as she asked the million dollar question.

"Which hospital did boyfriend go to?" Ruby asked.

"Vale General - and it's not boyfriend." Yang pouted from having the tables turned on her.

"Then who is it?" Ruby asked as she looked at Yang, who chose this moment to shut up and go back to her homework.

"Sky Lark from team CRDL." Blake said as she turned another page. "She turned his face into something resembling raw hamburger before I happened to come across them. It was a miracle he was still alive."

"Why do you always do that Yang?" Ruby asked with a sigh. She noted that now she'd put two guys in hospitals in a total of two dates. _Not the best statistic_.

"Doesn't matter anymore." Yang grumbled as she turned her book over and started flipping through it. "What matters is that now I have to have a four thousand word essay detailing the faunus war on Ozpin's desk by nine tomorrow morning."

"O-Kay… well I have a few things to do, so…" Ruby said as she stepped past Yang and into the bathroom.

After her shower, Yang was still in a bad mood and Blake seemed to be having fun by keeping her at her work while she started on yet another of the massive stack of books she'd taken from the library the other day.

Ruby dressed and left quickly to avoid another interrogation, which she knew would come soon, but wanted to put it off as long as possible - she wasn't ready to answer even her own questions.

Once out of the dorm, Ruby started her search for Weiss. She never hung around with the other students, but she loved the snow, so Ruby tried the courtyard. The snow had stopped and was about knee deep on either side of the shoveled path the benches had also been cleaned off, but there was no sign of Weiss or anyone else.

Ruby returned to the warmth of the hallway feeling like she was a walking popsicle. She tried the various libraries next to see if Weiss was maybe studying somewhere. _So she's not studying_.

Ruby was at a loss as to where her friend - girlfriend - whatever they were now - was. She wandered the corridors. And accidentally found Weiss on the other side of impact resistant glass that led to one of the sparring gyms.

Upon entering, she was greeted with Weiss's yell an the scream of a guy. Getting a better look, she recognized the guy as one of the CRDL guys.

"Come on! She's just a girl!" Cardin yelled from the side lines as the guy got unsteadily to his feet.

"Hey, Weiss!" Ruby called, getting a small nod from Weiss in return to her wave.

The referee signaled the start of the next round. Weiss seemed to be in a playful mood as she easily dodged the boy's attacks and taunted him. Ruby watched as Cardin signaled for the other boy to join the fight.

Apparently, Weiss had read Ruby's mind because she taunted Cardin with a smile on her face. "Are these all the toys you're going to give me?"

"It's all we can afford after 'someone' busted up our fourth." Cardin replied with venom that Ruby felt in her veins.

"Well, I guess I have to savor them then…" Weiss replied as she easily dodged the attacks from both guys and placed random glyphs around them to block their movement.

Cardin, having decided to join the fight after all, jumped over the narrow barrier and came up behind Weiss, already swinging his mace at her head.

"Weiss! Behind-" Ruby yelled in terror as Cardin let loose a swing that would have easily separated Weiss's head from her shoulders had she not been expecting the attack.

Weiss ducked into a roll, removing all her glyphs from team CRDL before attacking with the same brutal force - if not more - as the class two days earlier. It was over in under thirty seconds as Weiss individually tapped each member out, leaving Cardin for last.

The referee blew his whistle each time Weiss had achieved a 'kill' and ensured the fight wasn't disturbed by the 'dead' participant. In the end, Weiss gave a small bow and curtsied to Ruby who was clapping at the side lines.

"Yay, Weiss!" Ruby cheered as Weiss approached the barrier. She leaned over and gave Weiss a hug, which drew the glances of CRDL. Over Weiss's shoulder, Ruby yelled "Take a picture!"

Weiss pushed Ruby away gently and hopped the barrier. "Lets go." Is all she said as she took Ruby by the upper arm in a stiff grip and started to lead her away.

"What? Is the leader of Team RWBY too soft to take on CRDL?" Cardin called as he and his team seemed to get a second wind.

"Ignore him Ruby, he's just mad I beat them all single handedly."

"It's okay Weiss. I can take them too." Ruby said, ripping her arm from Weiss's grasp and running back to the barrier. She jumped it and drew Crescent Rose from her back, swinging it around before landing in her ready stance. Weiss had to give the girl props for showmanship.

"Ruby, wait!" Weiss yelled as she came up to Ruby. Weiss knew that Ruby's weapon wasn't the most practical for the small arena, and felt uneasy with team CRDL apparently out for blood. Once standing beside her, Weiss said the only thing that she knew would give Ruby a chance if things went bad. "Since you're the team leader, you can call me in if you want."

"That's okay, I can do this." Ruby said.

Weiss had no choice but to leave the area and watch.

Cardin jumped over the barrier followed closely by both his teammates.

The referee blew his whistle and the fight started. Ruby twirled her scythe dangerously as the boys quickly encircled her. Normally, this was a bad strategy, but Ruby's weapon offered a few perks in open space.

The boys all rushed at her at the same time and Ruby disappeared in her usual burst of rose petals. Looking around, the boys saw nothing and Ruby easily landed on the shoulders of one of Cardin's teammates, tapping him out with the scary big blade on her scythe.

Cardin, outraged at the loss of one of his team so early in the fight, rushed towards Ruby who narrowly dodged the attack. His teammate was luckier though, landing a hard punch that sent Ruby reeling back toward the barrier.

The teammate advanced and was about to pose for his 'kill' when the ref's whistle blew. Turning around, he saw Crescent Rose caressing the back of his neck, and Ruby's finger on the dust gun's trigger.

He stepped out of the curved blade and hopped over the barrier as Weiss watched in awe at the simple, yet elegant moves of Ruby wielding her dangerous, curved blade in the small space. The two remaining combatants circled each other, both attacking and blocking in the duel that was quickly turning vicious.

"Your girlfriend is scared I'll beat you up too bad!" Cardin taunted as he attacked.

Ruby dodged and countered just to be blocked in return. They resumed circling each other as Ruby replied. "Actually, I think she's just checking me out. But thanks for letting me know."

This threw Cardin for a moment and he paid for it as he was thrown across the arena - slamming into the barrier and falling to the floor.

"So it's you two now, eh? Jaune so bad he turned you gay?" Cardin taunted as he got back up.

"Why? Are you curious about giving it a try?" Ruby responded with sweet acid in her voice.

Weiss was staring at the two open mouthed. Her taunts had been nothing compared to Ruby's. She'd have to take notes for next time, _maybe it would be more fun with angry competition_.

"No. But by the look of your partner, I'll guess you're going to have some fun after you heal up from your beating!" Cardin said before he charged Ruby.

Weiss gasped at how easily they could insult each other, and blushed furiously as she pushed her emotions farther down.

"Assuming you win. Say, how's dear Sky doing?" Ruby asked, her voice dangerously sweet, like sugar coated poison.

"He's still in the hospital thanks to your sister!" Cardin attacked again and was once again knocked back by Ruby, who wasn't done with her taunts just yet.

Weiss was completely shocked at this piece of news because she'd made sure to leave the dorm before either Blake or Yang had woken to avoid their questioning. Now she knew why they seemed more angry than normal today.

"Oh, but I thought he had been transferred to the permanent care home." Ruby mocked confusion and Cardin let out a howl of rage as he charged Ruby.

Ruby spun her scythe, embedding the blade into the ground and using its rotational momentum to swing herself up. Her feet met Cardin's face with a crunch and Weiss flinched as she remembered the same thing happening in class to her. Cardin flew across the area, hitting his head on the very top of the barrier as the rest of his body pulled him over onto the floor.

The ref blew his whistle and Ruby replaced Crescent Rose at her back. She jumped down beside Weiss, taking her hand and threading her fingers through Weiss's. She pulled the still stunned Weiss out of the gym and started to head back to the dorm.

After about three turns down the hall, Weiss snapped out of her head and dropped Ruby's hand. Ruby turned to look at Weiss.

"What's wrong, Weiss?" Ruby asked cautiously, hoping that it wasn't anything major.

"How can you act like that in public?" Weiss responded. "Do you have any idea of what this information would do in the wrong hands?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Ruby responded in utter confusion.

"Acting like we're a couple!" Weiss hissed with a quick glance over her shoulder at the empty hall.

"I didn't think it mattered. I'm sorry, Weiss." Ruby responded dejectedly, hoping she wouldn't have to deal with a mad Weiss today.

Weiss let out a sigh and dropped her head, shaking it as if trying to get bad thoughts out of her head. She took Ruby's hand and turned toward the courtyard corridor.

"It's freezing outside." Ruby said, hoping Weiss wouldn't want to go outside for too long.

"I know. That's why it'll be the safest place to talk. Nobody will want to be out there today." Weiss answered, pulling Ruby through the doors and into the cold.

They walked to the center of the park and sat on the bench, cuddling together for warmth.

"So what is so important that you can't let anyone else overhear?" Ruby asked as she shivered uncontrollably at the icy breath of wind that rustled the trees, sending a puff of snow cascading down gently.

"I need to explain exactly why I don't want anyone to know about us." She answered. "It sort of starts with my dad."

"I'm not afraid of your dad, Weiss." Ruby started, hoping she'd get to go inside sooner rather than later.

"It's not him you have to worry about." Weiss said darkly as she started telling of her experience with the White Fang for the first time.

"But that wasn't your fault!" Ruby exclaimed, having forgot about the cold.

"I'm not done yet." Weiss sighed as she steeled herself to continue.

"My family has always had a giant, red, flashing target painted over it. Anyone who my family cares about is in constant danger because they will try anything, use anybody, to get to us!" Weiss said. When Ruby didn't grasp the meaning of her words, she sighed and tried again. "Ruby, if the white fang finds out I like you, you will most definitely be put on a hit-list. My dad is their biggest target, because he runs the company now, but one day I'll be in his seat, so they will do anything in their power to eliminate me if the chance arises. That includes hurting you, Ruby! And I won't let that happen!"

"Weiss…" Ruby said breathlessly as her chest constricted painfully at the emotion behind Weiss's words. "Nothing will happen to me-"

"You don't know that!" Weiss cut Ruby off. She hung her head, trying to figure out how to explain to Ruby just how much danger she was in. "Ruby, the whole board of directors had been killed just one floor above where I was sitting waiting for my dad, not two years ago! He was lucky because he wasn't in the room when the bomb went off. All they found were ashes, Ruby! Ashes!"

"Weiss, look at me." Ruby gently placed a hand on Weiss's cheek and turned her face to look at her. Once she'd made eye contact, she continued. "You're right… I can't guarantee nothing will happen to me…" Weiss opened her mouth to speak again, but Ruby placed a finger on her own lips to indicate she wasn't done. "But I won't let that small detail get in the way of us being together."

"But-"

"No, Weiss! The way I see it, you warned me. It's my decision to ignore that warning if I so choose!" Ruby said, some of her fury at the situation coming to the surface. "Either accept that or don't. If you don't, then I think we're done - as a couple and a team - because I won't have someone who's paralyzed by fear for _my_ safety on _my_ team!"

Weiss was shocked into speechlessness. She was amazed that, even knowing the risk, Ruby still wanted to be with her. They stared at each other for a moment and Weiss finally found the words she wanted to speak.

"I don't deserve you Ruby." Ruby looked like Weiss had hit her. Tears were welling up in her eyes and she opened her mouth but this time it was Weiss who put a finger to her lips. "But I'd love it if you'd be my girlfriend."

"Weiss…" Ruby said, the tears of hurt changing to tears of happiness at the acceptance of her ultimatum. The tears froze in tiny drops of crystal ice as they fell onto Ruby's cheeks.

Weiss couldn't handle seeing Ruby cry and wiped away the tears with her hands which were starting to turn blue from the cold. She leaned in and gave Ruby a kiss that ended too quickly in her opinion. They parted to find their lips partially frozen together.

After separating, Weiss gave in to a shiver. "It's freezing out here."

"Duh, that's why I didn't want to come out!" Ruby said in exasperation as she pulled Weiss along behind her as she ran for the warmth of the schools halls. Rose petals floating down behind them and landing in the fresh, cold snow like a decoration.

* * *

**End Note:**

**Once again, thanks for reading! My poll is still up, I have had a total of four votes for two options (I'll be adding together every vote in ANY plot option for the total plot tally, so you don't actually have to pick the one with votes already. Same goes for the lemon option.), and we are still looking at a tie which means I will flip a coin to decide. I may leave it up longer than chapter 10, I haven't decided as the plot shifts into higher gear in the later chapters, but for now lets say the cutoff is chapter 10.**

**Also, sorry I posted so late, but it's still wednesday (at least where I live), so it still counts! And again, come back next wednesday for the special bonus that comes built in with... Chapter 4!**


	5. Chapter 4: Arc 2 - Nora and Literature

**Author's Note:**

**Hello Everyone! I'll keep this short as I'm sure most of you just want to read. Most of you will notice that your scroll bar on your browser has a smaller slider than normal and that is because of the surprise I announced last chapter! EVERY CHAPTER THAT IS A MULTIPLE OF 4 IS A DOUBLE LENGTH CHAPTER!**

**Anyway, this chapter does contain references to adult content but does not go beyond simply mentioning the said adult content in passing, so I'm not changing the rating yet. Also, it seems that Blake, Nora, Pyrrha, and Ren all enjoy reading the same types of books. Funny...**

* * *

Ruby and Weiss came back into the room just as Yang jumped up with a whoop of victory as she once again threw the book across the room, this time hitting the wall beside the door, making Ruby and Weiss cower as they were charged by the ballistic blonde.

Yang scooped them up into a hug and spun them around before setting them down and running over to give Blake a high five, all the while chanting "I did it! I did it!"

"What is it that you did? Almost hit us with a book?" Weiss asked as she straightened her skirt and flattened her hair back into the usual ponytail.

"I finished my… bonus assignment." Yang said, once again trying to avoid the details of last nights events.

"You mean your punishment assignment." Ruby corrected as she jumped up into her hanging bunk, making it creak as it swung dangerously back and forth.

"I don't know why you are still trying to hide. What's done is done. Ruby and I both know. Just tell Weiss so I don't have to correct everything you say for the rest of the day." Blake said as she picked another book off the pile in her bed.

"What happened?" Weiss asked, her curiosity sparking as she dodged under Ruby's bed and sat on her own, ignoring the deathtrap above her.

"I went on a date with Sky Lark from CRDL." Yang said, her face a shade of red Weiss hadn't seen before. "Things got heated and I ended up sending him to the hospital by accident."

"How do you send someone to the hospital by accident?" Weiss asked incredulously as she took in Yang's solid frame. She was strong, but not the super human _I don't know my own strength_ type of strong, just average like herself, Ruby or Blake.

"I was trying for the morgue but Blake interrupted." Yang answered, sending a quick glance up to the faunus who was once again reading her book in Yang's bed.

"I figured you wanted to stay out of jail." Blake answered, teasingly as she turned another page of the book. How she managed to carry on a conversation while reading was beyond the others in the room.

"Well, thanks." Yang said as she gathered up her stack of papers and put a staple through the corner. "I have to hand this in, do any of you know where Ozpin's office is?"

"Not a clue." Ruby and Weiss answered at the same time.

"Jinx!" Ruby said quickly afterward. "You owe me a soda or something like that."

"I pick something." Weiss answered slyly.

"I know where his office is." Blake answered as she placed her bookmark into her book. "Haven't any of you read the introduction pamphlet yet? It's been weeks!" She cleverly changed the subject to avoid the dangerous atmosphere she sensed approaching at breakneck speed between Weiss and Yang.

"Not everyone has time to sit and read about _Ninjas of Love_, you know!" Yang answered.

Ruby started coughing as she choked on her breath and Weiss's eyes widened, looking from Yang to Blake.

Blake jumped off her bed, anger obviously burning behind her carefully polite tone. "Yang, have you been going through my stuff?"

"Umm…" Yang paused, slowly edging toward the door as Blake steadily advanced on her.

"You done did it, sis." Ruby sighed in a theatrically deep whisper at her sister's carelessness.

"Where in the world did you hear that?" Weiss asked when she realized Ruby had used a voice like that around her before.

"Just a movie or something." Ruby responded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world as she watched Blake back Yang into the door.

"Well, gotta run! See ya!" Yang bolted from the room with Blake close behind.

"I'm gonna get you Yang!" Blake yelled as she gave chase.

Yang flew around corners almost running into other students who yelled their surprise in the form of insults, but Yang didn't care. Blake was gaining thanks to her enhanced, catlike abilities that allowed her a more elegant form of navigation.

Blake rounded corners using the stone walls to help change direction and keep her momentum and Yang quickly saw she wasn't going to escape. She rounded one more corner without looking and ran straight into Professor Oobleck.

"Yang!" He exclaimed in shock as she bounced off him and landed on the floor. "What on Remnant are you doing?"

"Running from me, sir." Blake said as she stopped beside Yang, placing a hand on her shoulder as she started to get up.

"Good job! It isn't easy to escape a faunus, especially one who is as skilled as Blake!" He said as he considered the pair. "I'm glad you are pushing yourself to improve, but may I suggest you keep it in the gym? There is a track, after all."

"Of course, sir." Blake answered before the Professor zipped away with his freakish speed. "And Yang?"

"Uhhh…" Yang groaned, afraid of how bad she was going to pay for telling about Blake's secret book to the other girls.

"First, Professor Ozpin's office is right there." She pointed to the office just two doors down.

Taking advantage, Yang jumped up and ran to the door and disappeared through it. A minute later, she emerged to find Blake waiting for her.

"Okay, I know I shouldn't have said anything, but it sort of slipped out. I'm sorry." Yang apologized, hanging her head. "Can you just yell at me and get it over with?"

"I'm not going to yell at you." Blake said, considering the apology. "But I expect you to look me in the eyes when you apologize."

"Okay." Yang said, looking slowly up at Blake. "I'm sorry I told your secret."

"Thank you." Blake said, accepting the apology. "Now, to make it up to me, we're going to the bookstore."

"But you went through everything there already." Yang whined.

"Not that one. Off campus." Blake corrected.

"I'm not getting out of this am I?" Yang grumbled.

"Not a snowballs chance against a nevermore." Blake answered as she placed her hand in the small of Yang's back and gently guided her back to their room to grab their jackets.

* * *

The day was warmer now that the sun had risen and had the chance to reduce the chill in the air. The snow hadn't melted yet but it had gotten sticky and clung to their shoes, weighing them down as they trudged through the streets of Vale.

The bookstore in Vale was massive compared to the one at Beacon and Yang had a premonition of impending doom as they entered the shop. Blake picked a large cart and started to pile books of all genres and categories into neat stacks, keeping the weight evenly distributed as Yang pushed the cart. After an hour, Blake had finally finished piling her books and had told Yang to wait. She disappeared between a couple of shelves and came back with a selection of three books which she carried as she led Yang back to the register to pay.

Blake got the books in her arms wrapped in blank paper before Yang could see what they were and then proceeded to unload the cart. As Yang watched, she realized that there were a lot of books and they'd be heavy to carry back to Beacon. Letting out a groan, she finally realized that her punishment hadn't even started yet.

Blake smiled as she passed Yang bag after bag of books. Once Yang's arms were completely laden with bags, Blake started threading the rest over her arms. The two walked back to Beacon slowly both of them cursing the weight, though Yang had much more reason to curse than Blake had. Yang tried to get Blake to tell her what the last few books she'd gotten were to take her mind off the plastic cutting into her palms, but Blake only told her that she'd see soon enough and to stop asking.

Yang got a sort of interesting feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach when Blake told her what to do. It was out of character for Blake to do more than make suggestions or comment on the things happening around her. It was sort of thrilling because she almost never ordered anyone around without leaving room for argument or discussion.

"So, how was your date with Sun yesterday? You got back pretty early." Yang commented, as she had run out of things to say.

"It was okay. We decided to end it and stay friends." Blake said carefully. "He's moving west because the police are starting to harass him."

"Well, I guess it doesn't help that he steals for a living." Yang commented carelessly.

"No, it doesn't." Blake snapped. "It also doesn't help that everyone thinks he's part of the White Fang just because he's a faunus."

"Hey, I didn't mean anything by it." Yang said quickly as she readjusted the bags digging into her arms for the fiftieth time. "Actually, I'm curious how you got the money to pay for all these books."

"Stealing, actually." Blake answered.

"Wait, what?" Yang was caught completely off guard.

"I did a few jobs that required me to hijack trains that were transporting Schnee Dust." Blake answered. When she saw the look on Yang's face, she quickly added. "I did it humanely, I didn't kill anyone."

"But I've never heard of a train-jacking where the crew went unharmed." Yang said cautiously as she remembered countless news reports she'd seen over the years.

"Then I did my job well." Blake stated with a shrug. "I was supposed to draw as little attention as possible to the robberies. Bodies draw attention, so I made sure there were none. My robberies were always reported as accidents where the train separated from its cargo."

The two trudged along for a few moments before Yang replied. "That's kind of awesome. Just going all stealth ninja lover on 'em, eh?"

"Be quiet." Blake laughed as they continued up the path to Beacon.

"Tell me what's in the paper?" Yang prodded.

"I told you not till later." Blake said.

"Fine." Yang accepted grudgingly. "Why did you have to get so many books?"

"I thought it was a good punishment at the time." Blake replied as the two tried to pick up the pace to escape the cold that was starting to bite through their jackets.

After ten minutes of slogging through the sticky snow, Blake and Yang reached their dorm and collapsed into Yang's bed after dropping the bags of books all over the floor. Ruby was speechless at the shear amount of books they'd managed to carry all the way from Vale, and started to try to make some semblance of a path through the discarded bags so they could access the door if they needed.

Weiss came back from the bathroom and stopped dead in the doorway. "What did you do?" The question seemed to be aimed at anyone who would answer.

Breathlessly, it was Blake who managed to cough out an answer before returning to her occupation of catching her breath. "Went… book… shopping."

"Really? I'd have guessed you decided to start your own store!" Weiss exclaimed as she leaped over some bags and landed ungracefully on the edge of her bed.

"Chill, snowflake. It's just a few bags." Ruby said as she continued to stack the bags onto the table she'd cleared of the remaining food containers.

"Ruby!" Weiss said. "I told you not to call me that! How would you like it if I called you…" She paused for a moment, thinking of a good nickname. As usual, her creativity failed to give her anything useful. "If I called you flower?"

"Actually, I wouldn't mind." Ruby responded as Yang and Blake sat up to watch their roommates bicker.

"You are impossible, Ruby Rose." Weiss sighed in defeat.

"But you love me for it!" Ruby gloated in triumph. "Now help me get these stacked."

"You don't have to stack them." Blake spoke up, finally having caught her breath. "Help me open them so we can get rid of all that plastic."

Ruby started grabbing bags and tossing them to each of her roommates who ripped the plastic and placed the books into piles. After most of them had been opened. Yang started complaining again.

"Seriously! How will you read all these?" She asked Blake as she put another five books onto an already precariously balanced pile. "There has to be about five hundred books here."

"The receipt said three hundred fourty two." Blake responded. "And they're not all for me. The combat and strategy ones are for Ruby, the ones about advanced uses of dust are for Weiss, the anger management ones are for you."

The last part got a book thrown at her, but she caught it with her cat like reflexes. She raised an eyebrow at Yang who realized she'd just emphasized Blake's point. Yang stuck her tongue out and went back to unwrapping the books.

"What is this?" Ruby asked, holding up a paper package.

"It's mine!" Yang burst out.

This time, Blake just smiled at Yang evilly. "Open it Ruby."

Ruby peeled the paper back, and gasped. Weiss looked over at Ruby as she held the first book up for Weiss to see. The redness in Weiss's face told Yang she'd made a mistake in telling them the package was hers.

"The Faunus and her Huntress?" Ruby asked, turning the book to look questioningly at Yang. For the first time in known history, Ruby was shocked into silence.

Ruby put the book down on an empty space beside her piles and pulled the next book out of the paper. After a similar inspection, she opened it and looked inside, flipping a few pages before her face turned red. This time she threw the book to Weiss who looked confused by the title too. She mimicked Ruby's inspection and her face went red like the girl's cloak before she handed the book back. Ruby placed it on the pile, not in the mood to comment on it.

Blake watched the group with an amused expression on her face as Ruby picked up the last book. At this point Yang looked terrified of her claim to the books, and the others were both either really embarrassed or downright shocked by the content of them. Blake smiled at Yang, knowing that she'd finally had her revenge for Yang's earlier slip.

"The Taming of the Huntress?" Ruby asked weakly as she showed the book around. The cover was the only one that had a graphic image on it depicting a scantily clad faunus with cat ears holding what could only be a whip, standing behind an equally nude woman with long, flowing, blond hair. "I really had no idea you were into that type of thing…"

Weiss had obviously been shocked badly because she just continued to rip open an already opened bag over and over as she stared at the books with a look of disgust and amazement on her face as if she couldn't decide if she wanted to get a closer look or to set fire to them. Or both in that order.

"I- I'm not- I mean- I didn't- Blake… help?" Yang pleaded in a strangled, high pitched voice. At this Blake burst out laughing at her roommates, stunning them even more because they had never heard her laugh this hard before.

"The… looks… on… your… faces… are… priceless!" Blake forced out as she collapsed back on her bed, holding a stitch in her side. "Oh, I haven't laughed like this for a long time!" She managed before another bout of giggles forced her into speechlessness.

Both Ruby and Weiss broke up laughing off all the nervousness and embarrassment as even a red faced Yang started to laugh along with them. They laughed so long that finally, Weiss ran to the washroom, gasping something about throwing up between giggles.

This just made the other three laugh even harder until a knock on their door sobered Blake up enough to answer it. Ruby stealthily hid the books in between the piles beside her so nobody would see their titles or covers if they came into the room.

"Hey! Blake!" Nora said, peering past her into the room. "Whoa! Book-splosion! Awesome!" She said with her usual vigor as she brushed past Blake and jumped over a stack to land on Weiss's abandoned bed.

"Sorry Blake." Ren said. "What she meant was can I come in?"

Blake just waved him off as she resumed her seat at the end of Yang's bed, picking up another bag of books on the way.

Ren stood in the doorway as Nora bounced on the bed, looking over Weiss's stack of books.

"So what were you guys laughing at? It must have been funny cause we heard you guys all across the hall in our dorm." Nora said as she lifted a book and read the back. She placed it down and took another as she continued. "I heard you and was like: 'Ren, we should go over there, it sounds like fun!'"

"She just jumped up and started dragging me to the door without a word of explanation." Ren corrected as the girls cracked up laughing. Even Ren smiled at the ridiculousness. Nora had started building a castle of books and was wearing one on her head. "Pass me more books, Ruby!"

Not thinking, Ruby took the first book that she touched and threw it to Nora. She caught it and started to place it on the castle but stopped and froze. Yang looked at Ruby with horror in her eyes and Blake looked a little mortified as Nora seemed to change from normal to red in the blink of an eye and was slamming the door in Ren's face in the next blink.

"I can't believe you read these, Blake! They're like my secret favorite!" She exclaimed as she started to talk about her collection, which made Yang even more mortified as Ruby interrupted.

"Actually, Nora, that is Yang's book."

"Really? I never pegged you as a-"

"Nora!" Ren called from the other side of the door. "You do realize I know about your book collection, right? I've known you for forever."

"Right…" Nora said as she opened the door to a slightly disgruntled Ren. "Sorrry Ren."

"It's alright, Nora. I've gotten used to it." He replied with a little more frustration that hinted heavily at meaning more than just this one incident. "So which book is it?"

Ren took the book from Nora as he entered the room. He scanned the cover and quickly flipped through to a random page in the middle. He flipped a page and then another as he made his way to the window. He closed the book and handed it to Yang, who finally got a good look at the book she'd claimed to have bought. It was the one titled The Faunus and her Huntress.

"One of that author's better novellas." Ren commented as he leaned back on the sill. This drew the eyes of all the girls, including Nora.

"Ren, did you read my books?"

"Yes, Nora. I was interested to find out what you were always so embarrassed about." He responded. He didn't look even slightly embarrassed to admit to a room full of girls that he'd read Nora's erotica.

"That's…" Ruby started, but didn't know how to finish her sentence. "Sweet?"

"Sure." Weiss said as she curled up on her bed as if she couldn't find out how to get out of the room, so she would try to be as small as possible to avoid being dragged into the conversation.

"Actually, most of those novels aren't as bad as you think." Ren started to explain, his eyes on Nora and Nora alone.

"What do you mean?" Blake piped up, curiously to see if he'd picked up on the reason she read them too.

"Well, lets use this book as an example." Ren said as he held out his hand toward Yang. She reluctantly handed the book back to Ren who flipped through slowly, his eyes sliding from page to page as if he was reading a page every half second.

He stopped at a page for a minute or so before flipping back a single page. He held the book out for Yang to take, keeping his finger pointed at a passage near the bottom. Yang hesitated in taking the book, afraid of what she'd read where he indicated.

"Read it. It's just an example of why Nora reads them. I know because I've watched her skip whole sections before flipping back a page or two. I figured out what she was looking for on my third book. I thought it was interesting." He said the last part specifically to Nora who blushed again at his piercing gaze. "And, Nora? Shut the door please. I doubt Yang will regain her tough rep if Cardin walks by right now."

Nora jumped to reply as Yang started to read the passage. She was surprised by how tame yet completely raw it was, compared to the type of book it was in. Blake coughed beside her, expecting her to read out loud so the rest could hear too. Yang shook her head and handed the book to Blake who simply coughed "wimp" before starting to read.

"Their figures entwined, they fell into the place just before sleep where everything seemed possible. So what if the world told them it wasn't right to be together, so what if their families disowned them. Wasn't the whole point in life to just love and be loved, and have fun at every chance?" Blake paused as she turned the page. Her eyes lit with unrestrained emotion as she continued. "Sarah's hand slowly reached up to my ears, gently stroking the soft fur. 'I think I love you, Bell.' Sara stated quietly before her lips gently brushed mine. I felt my mind grow hazy as the afterglow of our sex started to wear off. 'I love you too.' I responded, but I wasn't sure if she'd heard me. After a minute, I no longer cared as I fell into the dark abyss of sleep, cuddled safely in my true love's arms."

The room was deathly silent. All the girls were staring at Blake as if she'd stripped naked in front of them. Ren just observed the others thoughtfully as if he were a scientist observing his test subjects. The silence stretched and finally, the silence was broken.

"That was beautiful. A little bit…" Weiss stopped, unable to find the right word to continue her train of thought.

"Intense." Ruby finished after another moment of silence.

"Yeah." Yang agreed. "I never knew those books were so…"

"Profound?" Blake suggested.

"I was going to say emotional, but that fits better I guess." Yang admitted.

Nora had been amazingly quiet as she watched Ren observing everyone in the room. "I think I have to talk to Ren." She said and Ren let her hook her arm through his and lead him out of the room, leaving team RWBY to discuss the books they'd bought.

"What's bothering you Nora?" Ren asked as Nora led him aimlessly down the hallway.

"I…" Nora started before going silent. They continued to walk down the hall until they'd gone almost all the way to the other side of the school.

"I can only help if you talk to me, Nora." Ren stated as they rounded a corner to start circling back. "I'm here, Nora. I'm not going anywhere."

Nora sighed as the usual words from his mouth seemed to relax her. Believe it or not, she didn't deal with change well, and Beacon had been nothing but changes so far. The only constant seemed to be Ren.

"What changed?" Nora asked, realizing afterward that she hadn't provided any context for her question.

She needn't have worried because Ren knew her more than she gave him credit for. "Nothing's changed, Nora. I'm still me. I have always been me. And hopefully I always will be."

"But something's different." She grumbled, not knowing how to explain.

"Different isn't always a bad thing, you know." Ren told her.

"You always say that, but not once has it been true." She complained.

"What about the time I brought you some food I'd cooked. It was different than the food your mom cooked." He pointed out.

"But they were your pancakes." She stated, obviously seeing them as an exception.

"What about Beacon? Aren't you having more fun here than at the normal combat school?" Ren asked again.

"But that's 'cause I have you here to help me." She said, as if she really believed all her fun was due to Ren's intervention.

"Am I?" Ren asked quietly.

"Why wouldn't you be?" Nora asked with a smile as they stopped. The part of the school was filled with classrooms which were abandoned this late on Sundays. "I'm your partner- er, teammate, why wouldn't you be?"

Ren just looked at her as he weighed his thoughts carefully. He let out a breath and started to open his mouth to speak when Nora continued.

"See? I told you something's different!" She exclaimed as she grabbed his shoulders and shook him back and forth - or at least tried to. He barely swayed from his position. "You always answer me right away. You never think of what you say before you do."

"You're thinking of yourself again, Nora." Ren said with a smile. She probably hadn't realized she'd insulted him by accident. "And I know things are different."

"But why, Ren? Everything was awesome and then all of a sudden, they weren't." Nora said sadly. "Why aren't they now?"

Ren let out a breath of exasperation. Nora was not making this easier and to be honest, he didn't know what he wanted to say anyway. He decided a portion of the truth was better than nothing. "I can't answer that for sure."

"Well, lets start simple, then." She said as she started to pull him along again. "How about you start where you decided you wanted to read my books that I thought you didn't know about. Like how did you find out I read them?"

"Well, I sort of guessed you weren't embarrassed from reading a textbook, so I took a look and found it hollowed out with another book inside." Ren admitted. "I read a few because I couldn't believe you would read books like that. I was sort of shocked to be honest."

"And? Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because I wanted to see why you read them before I said anything." Ren answered. "I started to pay closer attention when you were reading about history."

Nora blushed a little at the thought of Ren watching her so closely that he could tell exactly which parts she liked to read. "But you didn't say anything."

"I didn't really find the chance to bring it up, and I figured that it didn't really matter. Everyone likes different things." Ren stated.

"What do you like?" Nora asked curiously.

"Nature, mostly." Ren answered. "I like the way everything is so beautiful, even if it is scary or disgusting, everything has a beauty of its own and deserves to be admired."

"Wow…" Nora considered his response for a moment and thought of all the times she'd found Ren admiring simple things like a tree without any leaves or the way a flower bent toward the sun. "I never really thought of it like that."

They walked together in silence. Slowly approaching the populated area of the school. Nora seemed to notice this, and turned them down another hallway that led back along the next row of classrooms as if she wasn't ready for their alone time to end just yet.

The hall Nora chose was lined on one side with windows facing out over the edge of a cliff. From here, you could see the Forever Fall and most of the surrounding area. After walking about half way down, Nora stopped to look out. Ren hung back as he watched Nora, her hair illuminated with a halo as her head eclipsed the setting sun.

"You're right, Ren. It's beautiful." Nora said almost breathlessly as she took in the snow covered scenery as the golden hues of the setting sun set the world ablaze with color that was normally absent in the winter months.

"Yes, you are." Ren agreed, his mind wandering as he watched Nora admiring the scene.

"Huh?" She turned to face Ren. "What was that?"

"Huh?" He snapped back to the hallway and a Nora that had an odd expression on her face. He knew she wasn't mad or frustrated, but she wasn't happy either. "Sorry?"

"What did you just say?" Nora prompted. "I said the view was beautiful. What did you say?"

He could remember what he was thinking, but he hadn't said that out loud, had he? He started to panic as he realized he'd zoned out and he might very well have spoken his thoughts. He coughed to clear his throat as well as steel himself. He would only repeat the smallest part of his thoughts unless Nora prompted him for more. "I agreed."

"I know, but what did you agree to?" Nora's face was starting to turn from the weird expression to one he knew meant she was upset.

"I agreed that the scene I was looking at was beautiful." He carefully spoke, trying to explain without saying the words, that he had been looking at her.

Nora didn't say a word as she turned and started to walk away from him, farther into the unpopulated area of the school.

"Nora!" Ren said as he started to run to catch up to her.

Nora ignored him, but started to run too. She was faster than him and turned a corner, quickly jumping into an empty classroom as Ren came around the hallways corner to find Nora gone.

"Nora." Ren called to the empty hall. From experience he knew she was probably hiding just behind one of the doors.

Nora collapsed slowly against the wall beside the door. _He has to leave sooner or later, and then I'll go too_. She didn't want to force anything, or ruin their friendship, but it was just so hard to continue to pretend she didn't care for him so much. Especially since she spent most of her time with him.

The previous month had been torture for her as she watched the other girls converse with him as if he wasn't taken already. But he wasn't was he? Nora was just his best friend. Not his girlfriend or anything. And the one time she thought he was showing some reciprocation of her feelings, he just dodged her questions.

_But he admitted to basically staring at you while you read those filthy but amazing books, and he understood what she'd seen in them. He hadn't written her off as some pervert like most people would have._

But he had obviously never meant to call her beautiful, even though he said that everything was. It was all just a lie. He didn't see her as beautiful. He was just a liar, Lie Ren the liar.

"Nora." Ren called again, but this time closer to her door. "Darn it!" He cursed as he collapsed against a wall. Nora was pretty sure he was sitting directly behind her, because she could hear his grumbling from the almost closed door.

"You're helpless, you know that?" He was obviously berating himself. Nora had never heard him sound so frustrated or angry. It hurt to know he was aiming it at himself, but she didn't move, she couldn't face him right now. "You say something, then can't repeat it if you try! What is the point of even trying if you aren't going to make a move?"

Nora's curiosity was piqued at this last part. She held her breath and listened, not wanting to accidentally interrupt him.

"Oh, but she's your best friend! You don't want to make things weird, right? Well even she's told you things are weird, so too late for that one!" A loud thunk in the hall made Nora jump a little as she imagined Ren smashing his head back into the wall. "Now she hates you, all because you were too weak to say anything…."

He trailed off, but Nora didn't hear him get up to leave. She was shocked by his monologue because she had never realized he talked so much to anyone - himself included, but that could be because she was the one constantly talking. He was always telling her that she was talking too much. Nora guessed he was probably right.

She got up and opened the door silently. Ren was looking back down the hall at the fading light coming through the windows and didn't notice her as she sat beside him. Slowly, she placed her hand on his and he jumped as if she had tried to set him on fire.

"Nora!" He exclaimed as he settled himself back down beside her. "I was looking for you."

"I know." Nora said. She wanted him to talk for once.

"Okay." He said. They were silent for a moment, then he continued. "I bet you hate me now."

"I could never hate you." Nora admitted. Try as she might, even as she ran from him, she harbored no ill feelings for her friend.

"Oh…" Ren continued to look into Nora's eyes as they sat in silence. "Are you okay? You're quiet."

"I've been told I talk too much sometimes." Nora replied, a smile coming to her face.

"It's not a bad thing, though." Ren admitted with a laugh as they continued to stare into each others eyes. The light was slowly growing dimmer, casting long dark shadows down the hall. Nora's eyes were reflecting the last rays of the sun coming through the window and Ren thought he would never see something as beautiful as Nora was in this moment ever again. He took a deep breath and started. "Back there, in the hall…"

"Yes?" Nora asked hopefully. Ren watched that same strange expression reveal itself on her face again. This time, he could see it better. Her eyes seemed to dance and at the same time remained perfectly still as her face turned to look at him squarely, telling him he had her full attention (a hard thing to get).

"I didn't say… I mean- what I said was…." He seemed to have a lump in his throat and couldn't get the words out. He turned his head and coughed quickly before turning back. Nora saw a fire in his eyes the like of which she'd never seen before. It was almost like they were glowing in the darkness. "You are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen." He exhaled shakily as he prepared for the worst.

What he didn't expect was for Nora to remain silent. She just stared at him as if she was admiring something pretty on display at a store. He started to turn away, but Nora placed a hand on his cheek, forcing him to keep looking at her.

Slowly, she leaned toward him. She was being cautious as if she was leaning toward a frightened and dangerous animal, and stopped with no more than a centimeter between their lips. Her eyes were questioning and large as if she was at the same time begging him to give her a reaction and wondering what she was doing.

Ren didn't wait for her to decide, and moved the last inch and kissed his Nora for all the pent up emotions warring inside him were worth. Their eyes closed as they sunk into each other, Nora elated that she'd finally gotten Ren to kiss her and Ren equally elated that he was finally acting on the fantasies he'd had of him and Nora for as long as he could remember.

Breathlessly, they broke apart, only far enough to breathe and Nora nestled her head into Ren's neck.

"I've wanted to do that for a long time." Ren whispered into her ear as Nora's hair tickled his lips.

"So have I, but I was afraid you wouldn't like me that way." Nora admitted quietly in Ren's ear.

"That was never a possibility." Ren said as he started to rub Nora's back slowly in the circles that always calmed her down whenever she'd had a bad dream. She felt even more heat rush to her already burning face as she realized she spent almost every night in Ren's bed because of her constant nightmares.

As if sensing her thoughts, Ren whispered so quietly that she almost missed what he'd said. "You're my best friend, Nora, and I love you, no matter what."

She melted into his arms and thought that she was, for the first time in the history of ever, glad that something had changed.

* * *

"Guys!" Nora yelled excitedly as she burst into team RWBY's room.

The four girls were already sleeping, and Nora bounced around, waking them up.

"Ruby! Blake! Wake up! Weiss! Wake up!" She paused as she saw everyone start to come out of their sleep.

"What is it Nora?" Ruby asked groggily as Weiss tried to get out of bed and ended up laying face down on the floor.

Blake slowly uncurled herself and leaned on her elbow as she wiped sleep from her eyes. Yang was still grumbling in her sleep.

"Wake up, Yang!" Nora yelled right beside the sleeping girls ear, causing her to snap awake and throw a punch which Nora easily dodged, hopping back to the doorway.

"Yang!" Blake said, a hint of threat in her sleep heavy voice as Yang made to get up and try to hit Nora again.

"Fine." Yang grumbled, relaxing on her bed as Weiss slowly got back to her feet and climbed unsteadily into her bed again.

"What's wrong Nora?" Ruby asked again.

"Nothing's wrong!" Nora piped cheerily.

"Then why?" Weiss asked, too tired to be mean.

"Because Ren said he loves me!" Nora squealed. "I can't believe he's actually my boyfriend now!"

"Couldn't this have waited for morning?" Blake asked as Weiss turned over and slammed a pillow over her head.

Nora looked at them like they were being stupid. "That's what Ren said. But it is morning… technically…" She answered cautiously, Yang had started to reach for a book off a nearby stack.

"Well, that's it, I'll see you guys in class tomorrow!" Nora said as she started to pull the door closed again.

Yang threw the book, hitting the back of the door where Nora's head had been not a moment before.

Nora popped her head back into the room, looking at Yang. "You know, the books wont last long if you keep throwing them!"

"Goodnight, Nora!" All four girls yelled as Nora slammed the door shut.

"Who's job was it to lock the door?" Yang grumbled as she tried to get comfortable on her bed again.

"Sorry…" Blake replied as the girls tried to fall back asleep.

"Is it just me… or is anyone else completely awake now?" Ruby asked the room at large after a moment of silence.

"I'm gonna hit Nora for this." Yang grumbled in response.

"Make sure you leave some for me." Weiss added in a huff.

* * *

**End Note:**

**Hey again. Keeping this short as well, the poll for chapter 20 is up on my profile – lemon vs. plot. I haven't checked the count this week but there are only 6 weeks left to cast your vote on which chapter I publish. Also this is one of two single chapter arcs that I had written. I tend to avoid short stuff, so this is rare.**


	6. Chapter 5: Arc 3 - To Be a Leader

**Author's Note:**

**Hey everyone, this is the last 1 chapter arc I have in volume 1, and I only did it to give Pyrrha a test drive. Turns out that I am not very convinced that I can write her properly. Anywho, I'll just leave the rest for the end, so enjoy.**

**This chapter contains grumbling, sleeping, crying, and a showcase of Jaune's ability to take care of his team. Nothing major, so still keeping it at T.**

* * *

"Girls! Why are you all half asleep?" Professor Oobleck asked as he zipped back and forth between Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Blake, and Pyrrha. "I was under the impression you had a weekend to recharge your energy. Why are you not energized?"

"We're sorry, Professor. We had an overexcited teammate to deal with last night." Pyrrha answered for the group.

"Be that how it may, I must insist you are more attentive in class. You will all compose a summary of this class, minimum one page, to be on my desk tomorrow." He said as he took another sip of coffee. "And may I recommend coffee the next time you are feeling a lack of attentiveness."

"Yes, Professor." The group answered with a grumble.

"Very well. Now, as you all know, the upcoming combat tournament will take place next week. Therefore, I will not be giving homework that must be handed in. However, I will be giving you the assignments for your own studies, as a guideline for the test coming up after the tournament." He paused once again. His coffee must have been empty because he paused with the cup half way to his mouth, which turned down in a frown. "You are dismissed."

Everyone sat in their seats as Professor Oobleck left the room. Slowly, they realized they were dismissed and started to get up. Nora was bouncing like usual and drew the stares of all the other girls. Yang was visibly mad at Nora, but too tired to actually do anything, which the rest of her team was happy about, seeing as they were too tired to stop her if she started anything.

"Nora?" Ruby mumbled as she started past the group of half asleep girls.

"What's up?" Nora answered, bouncing to a halt in front of her.

"Don't ever do that again." Yang grumbled as she tried to get up and collapsed back into her chair.

"Do what?" Nora asked, obviously less concerned for their lack of sleep than they were.

"Wake us up in the middle of the night, you dunce!" Weiss clarified in her usual way. She'd had eight cups of coffee and was in a very bad mood, even by her standards.

Nora flinched at Weiss's tone, and Pyrrha felt the need to add another comment. "Unless it involves something important for all of us."

"Like an alien attack." Blake grumbled as she managed to keep her feet and lift her bag over her shoulder.

The others took that as the queue to also get up. Weiss and Ruby stumbled and ended up with their arms linked to stay upright and Yang happened to stumble into Pyrrha who caught her before she hit the floor. Blake was the only one who seemed completely able to stand even with her lack of sleep.

"I thought you were some type of champion?" Yang asked Pyrrha as they stumbled out of the room.

"I am, but I also have Nora sleeping in the same room. Or in the case of last night, not sleeping." She replied.

"Oh…" Yang replied as the implication slowly worked its way into her brain. "She kept you up all night?"

"No, I managed to sleep for thirty five minutes while she went to get ready this morning." She responded.

Jaune came up to the group and stopped beside Yang and Pyrrha. "Why are you all so tired?"

Pyrrha shook her head and Yang noticed a small smile appear on her lips. "Why are you not?" Yang asked, surprised at his total lack of tiredness.

"He slept all last night." Pyrrha answered. "He and Ren talked for maybe five minutes that was mostly silence and then they both fell asleep while Nora decided to recount in amazing detail her evening. In fact, I think it would have been shorter if I was there."

"Oh…" Yang said. "I feel bad for you now, but I won't trade places, so don't ask."

"That's alright. She is my teammate, after all." Pyrrha answered.

"Why don't you just fall asleep next time? It works fine for me." Jaune piped up.

"Well, some people cant sleep through Nora." Pyrrha snapped.

"Sorry, I was just trying to make a joke." Jaune said dejectedly.

"It's okay, I'm not in the mood for jokes today though." Pyrrha said.

"You could always hide in our dorm next time Nora goes crazy." Yang offered. "We have a lock and everything."

"I wouldn't want to impose…" Pyrrha started, but Yang put up her hand to stop her.

"Just call our dorm an anti-Nora sanctuary." Yang said, smiling at her own joke.

"Thank you." Pyrrha answered grateful to have a backup plan next time Nora got out of hand.

"Well, I'm going back to bed." Yang said as she broke away from Pyrrha who stumbled and was caught by Jaune. Yang followed her roommates into their dorm and Blake put a piece of paper on the door before closing it.

Jaune let out a small laugh as he pointed it out to Pyrrha who'd started to turn to their dorm. On the sign was a few words written in thick black ink. We're sleeping, Nora - wait for tomorrow!

Pyrrha felt herself smile as she leaned against Jaune who took the cue to lead her back into their dorm.

* * *

A loud bang echoed in the dark, making Pyrrha's eyes snap open. The little light she saw was useless to see more than a blurry shape that moved swiftly past her vision before disappearing as another crash echoed in the small room.

The shape that bounced back up was shaking something off and hissing a string of curses under it's breath as Pyrrha reached for her rifle.

"Stop right there." Pyrrha commanded, her voice already rid of the sleep and her head felt much better than it had the last time she was awake.

"Pyrrha, it's me!" Jaune said as he swayed and fell down again. "Oof!"

"Jaune, what on earth are you doing?"

"Trying to get around Nora's mess. Sorry I woke you." Jaune said as he untangled himself from something and threw it at the massive pile that was Nora's bed. "How does she even have this much stuff?"

Pyrrha stifled a laugh as she turned on the lamp that sat beside her bed. "You really cant see well in the dark."

"Tell me something I don't know." Jaune grumbled as he stepped over another smaller pile of Nora's stuff. "Sometimes I wish I was part faunus so I could see."

"Where'd Nora and Ren go off to?" Pyrrha asked as she noticed Ren's empty bed. She had realized the first night when Nora had tried to sleep in her own bed that her nightmares meant a rather loud shouting match about fried chicken, which Nora had somehow won, even though she'd been half asleep at the time.

"Dunno. He said something about the library, but I don't think they'll let Nora stay, so probably the food court?" Jaune suggested as he finally made it to the dresser and pulled out a night shirt. He headed into the washroom, leaving Pyrrha with her thoughts as he changed.

Looking down, Pyrrha realized she was wearing her own nightclothes. _I don't remember putting these on._ Pyrrha thought as she readjusted her pillow to sit up at the headboard. She pulled a book she'd been reading toward her and started in on the current chapter. It was one of Nora's books she'd accidentally found. It looked like a history book, but really had another book inside it. This book was excellently concealed and even Nora didn't realize it was hers when she had seen Pyrrha read it.

The current chapter was full of action. A car chase was sending the protagonists around the city as the corrupt police officer was chasing them. The protagonists were a couple of huntresses and had apparently robbed a bank in one of the chapters she'd skipped. It wasn't uncommon for her to skip chapters if she was uncomfortable with the subject matter being covered, but at the same time, she loved how the characters were so comfortable in battle together - almost like they each knew what the other was thinking. She often wondered if JNPR would ever work that well together.

Jaune exited the washroom and started to wind his way slowly through the mess as carefully as possible to avoid falling down again. He saw Pyrrha's eyes skimming over line after line. There was no way she could like history that much.

"Whatcha reading?" He asked as he sat on his own bed.

Pyrrha jumped, not having noticed Jaune reenter the room. "What? Oh, it's just history." She responded hastily as she closed the book and put it back where she'd taken it from.

"There's no way you're that interested in history." Jaune prodded, his eyes never straying from Pyrrha's face. "What's Nora got in there?"

"How did you-"

"Nora has all her books' pages replaced with other books. She's always borrowing her text's from Ren and me when she needs to do an assignment." Jaune said as if it was obvious. "So what are you reading?"

"Um, this one didn't have a cover page." Pyrrha said, hoping he'd drop it so she wouldn't have to explain what it was about. She wasn't that lucky.

"Do I have to read it too?" Jaune asked her teasingly. He already knew what type of books Nora kept hidden, and was having fun watching Pyrrha flounder. He knew it was a little mean, but hey - what else was there to do?

"No!" She blurted out desperately. Then tried to cover it up. "I mean… you can read it if you want, but I don't think its really your thing…"

Jaune couldn't hold it in any longer and started laughing at how red Pyrrha's face had gotten as she tried to hide what type of book it was. Pyrrha looked at him with a confused expression as he collapsed on his bed.

"What's so funny?" she asked cautiously as he slowly stopped laughing.

"You are." He responded making her face grow even hotter. She knew she was blushing, but didn't know if it was anger or embarrassment. "I know what type of book it is, I've seen others she's hid by accident when I was in a rush and couldn't find my books. Made for an interesting afternoon to say the least."

"You knew?!" She asked incredulously. This had turned from embarrassing to mortifying really quick.

"Of course I know. But it's not that bad to be honest." Jaune replied, noticing that Pyrrha looked as if she might be collecting all her blood in her face. "I mean- it's just a story right? It's supposed to be an outlet for your fantasies, though some of those fantasies are a bit… explicit. But I don't judge, everyone has their own 'thing'."

"Um… it's not really my thing either… I mean, I don't read those parts…" She answered shyly.

"Well, that's fine too. Like I said, I don't judge by what you read. Look at me, I like X-Ray and Vav." He stated matter of factly as he stared at the ceiling above his bed. He lay on his bed perfectly still, for a moment, waiting for Pyrrha's next statement.

"Oh…" Was all she could think to say. She was less embarrassed to know that Jaune didn't think of her as some weird pervert for reading Nora's books, but at the same time, she wondered what he was thinking about as he looked at the ceiling.

"Are you going to stay up?" He asked, finally turning his head to look at Pyrrha.

"I'm kind of tired to be honest." She responded, more than a little grateful that he'd dropped the subject and given her an out. "Is it okay if I turn off the light?"

"You read my mind." He said as a small grin worked its way onto his face. Pyrrha looked away, feeling her slowly fading blush surge back to the surface. She reached over to the lamp and switched it off before settling back into bed.

_This school just might kill me yet._

* * *

Jaune was just ahead of her as they rounded the corner. Their prey was almost caught. It's not like they needed luck in the streets that were so familiar to Pyrrha. She didn't follow Jaune and instead took a different route to box their target in.

She jumped a low fence and used a flag pole that was mounted in cement to swing around the corner. She was just in time and hit the man's face with her knee as she landed on him and rolled off.

"Jaune!" She called as Jaune leaped over her and stabbed his sword into the ground right where the man's throat was a mere second before. The man was already up, pulling small star-shaped blades out of his coat and throwing them at Jaune and Pyrrha. Jaune used his shield to stop them, and the man used their temporary blindness to use a dust crystal to make a smoke screen to escape.

"Pyrrha!" Jaune yelled as she ran up to the smoke, using her rifle's heat scope to follow the man's movements. She saw him turn a corner and disappear.

"On fifth!" She said as she leaped up to the low building beside her and used it to launch herself onto the roof of the building across the street.

"On it!" Jaune said as he tore down an alley.

Pyrrha ran over the roof and jumped to the next roof as she looked down to the street where she saw Jaune emerge and give chase to the man. He ducked back into the back alleys. Pyrrha was almost on top of him.

She jumped and landed, cutting him off. "End of the line!" She said as she transformed her rifle into a spear. "This is the last chance you have. Surrender!"

Jaune rushed into the other side of the alley, and settled into his battle stance. The criminal turned halfway towards Jaune and Pyrrha raised her spear so she could throw it if he tried anything.

Jake saw he was out of options, so he raised his hands above his head. "Okay, then. I surrender."

Jaune reached to his belt with his shield arm and Pyrrha saw what was happening far too late. Jake swung both arms down and out of his sleeves flew more of the star blades. Pyrrha barely got her shield up to keep them from biting into her vital organs. The other stars missed, except for one that skimmed the outside of her leg, making a deep cut as it went.

But her grunt of pain was easily overpowered by Jaune's scream. She lowered her shield to see the man stepping past Jaune who was clutching his stomach as his tattered white shirt turned slowly red.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha yelled as she raced to his side and Jake rushed away down the alley. Pyrrha gave chase, leaving Jaune because that is what her training told her to do - even though her heart was telling her to stay at his side. As she gained on the criminal, she screamed and planted her foot to throw her spear.

He spun with a strange looking star in his hand - it was carved out of a red dust crystal. Pyrrha unleashed her spear, aiming for his head and he threw the blade. It spun through the air, missing the spear by millimeters as the spear continued on it's path. The criminal's dead body smashed into the ground from the spear's momentum as his blade barely missed Pyrrha. She turned her head to see Jaune standing behind her. The blade was firmly embedded in Jaune's gut.

"Pyrrha…" Jaune groaned apologetically before he smashed into her with his shield sending her flying away from him.

As Pyrrha flew, she was able to see Jaune kneel behind his shield and watch her as he coughed blood out of his mouth. He smiled at her for a split second before he exploded in a cloud of black smoke.

Pyrrha landed hard. She coughed, desperately trying to regain her breath as she turned to the settling debris where Jaune had stood. She approached the debris. The smoke started to clear and a gruesome scene came into view. Blood coated the ground like dirt. Small bits of oddly shaped, dark red rock covered the area. Jaune's shield stood with its bottom embedded in the concrete. Behind it, there was nothing but more red that coated the alley walls and ground.

"No!" Pyrrha gasped, despair freezing her. The smoke was almost completely gone and the dying light of the setting sun cast the alley in a dark shadow. On one side of Pyrrha, her spear stuck out from the criminal's head at a right angle. On the other side, Jaune's shield smoked as it stood like a small monument surrounded by rubble.

"Jaune… no… NOOO!" She screamed to the alley and it's two dead combatants.

* * *

"Pyrrha!" Jaune called as he pinned her flailing arms to her side and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. It would have been romantic, but he was scared by some of the things she'd been screaming. She'd screamed about people dying and other mostly unintelligible, but still terrifying things. "Pyrrha! Wake up!"

He was face to face with her and her eyes snapped open, they were full of the fear of her dream and she was obviously still in panic mode.

"Pyrrha, everything's alright. Nothing's going to hurt you." He said as he started to rub her back through the thin night shirt he'd told Nora to put on her earlier. "Shhh. It's okay."

The fear slowly left her eyes as a spark of recognition entered. "Jaune!" She gasped and suddenly she was hugging him as though her life depended on it.

Jaune kept rubbing her back as he felt his rib cage enter the danger zone. After a moment he felt her start to cry. He stayed silent, knowing that she had to let it out. He continued to rub her back in circles as they stayed wrapped in each others arms on her bed. Pyrrha had her face buried in Jaune's chest as she shook with the last of her sobs. Jaune had his chin resting gently on top of her head.

"Jaune?" She asked hoarsely as she coughed to rid her throat of tears.

"It's okay. I'm here." He replied quietly into the air above her head.

"Thank god." Is all she replied before she pulled away from him enough so that they were no more than an inch from each others faces. Jaune stopped rubbing her back and stopped holding her arms so she wouldn't feel trapped.

She looked into his eyes for what seemed like hours. Jaune watched as emotions played through them, one after the other. In the beginning, there was disbelief followed by understanding, and then they increased in the speed they changed at and they all seemed to blur together.

She reached behind his head and guided it forward. Their lips met gently and Jaune tasted the remaining salt that hadn't been rubbed off on his shirt, on her lips.

They broke apart and Pyrrha pulled in a long and shaky breath. Just as it looked like she was going to say something, she froze. Her eyes staring into his.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Jaune asked softly, not knowing what to do. First she was kissing him out of nowhere and then she was staring at him as if he'd done something wrong. _Girls are crazy._

"Everyone was dead. I couldn't help anyone!" She exclaimed before another round of tears flooded her eyes and she buried her face into his shirt again. "Ruby, Blake, Ren, everyone! Even you!"

It took Jaune a moment to find the right words to reassure his teammate that everything would be okay. "I can't lie and say that nothing will happen in the future, but that's why we're here at Beacon. So we can learn to work as a team, so that we're ready if or when we are needed. It might not be a big comfort, but I have a feeling that we're going to be okay as long as we work hard, and work together."

Pyrrha listened to his speech and seemed to digest it slowly. "Jaune?" She started, pausing as she fidgeted with the hem of her top.

"Yeah?" He answered hesitantly, he was about ready to return to his own bed, seeing as she'd calmed down now.

"Can you stay with me?" She asked, knowing this was being more than a little forward. "I mean, I had a horrible nightmare, and I don't want to fall asleep again and have another one. I just cant do it."

"Sure." He said simply as he settled into the bed beside her. He was nervous but Pyrrha didn't seem to mind, so he resolved he would stay until she told him to leave or she fell asleep. After all, Ren and Nora shared because of Nora's nightmares.

She surprised him by wrapping her arms around him and pulling him close so they were pressed tightly together. They were so close that they could kiss again if either one moved closer, but neither did.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He asked after he felt her relax a little.

"I guess…" She hesitated as she readjusted her head on his shoulder. "I just don't want anything like that to happen…"

"Well, I'm not dead. See?" He wiggled a little in her arms to emphasize the point. She felt herself blush and was thankful it was too dark for him to see. "And I promise I'll work hard so we all stay this way."

"Yes. You're right." Pyrrha sighed contentedly. She was so happy that he didn't run back to his own bed as soon as she'd calmed down, that she pulled him tighter. His body was ridiculously warm and she felt like ice. She would have burrowed into him if it was possible to do so without hurting him. "Thank you Jaune… for everything."

He watched as she closed her eyes and her breathing slowed. "Goodnight, Pyrrha."

* * *

**End Note:**

**My poll has 7 votes, with 1 more for plot than lemon. Vote if you haven't to ensure the chapter of your choice gets uploaded because I am also doing a seperate poll among friends that will be added to the online poll when I want the result, so it can still go either way.**

**Also, the release of this chapter marks the 50% mark in terms of plot arc count. That means there will be only 3 more arcs this volume, but since this is only chapter 5, the remaining arcs are exponentially larger than any I've released so far.**

**Look forward to next Wednesday!**


	7. Chapter 6: Arc 4 - A Dangerous Night Out

**Author's Note:**

**Welp, another week, another chapter. I'll get down to the contents first:**

**This chapter contains a few adult references – if you dont get it, don't worry about it. Otherwise it's one of my more fluffy chapters and I had a bit of difficulty editing it, so if anyone has opinions on it to share, I'd love to hear them!**

**Other than that, Thanks for reading and have fun!**

* * *

"Teams will be divided back into the original pairings from your initiation." Professor Ozpin said as he addressed the combat tournament participants. "Those who do not have a partner participating, will be assigned one."

"The first matches will be set up randomly in structure and form of participation. Once your team is defeated, you are eliminated from the tournament. The final match will consist of four teams in a free for all style match." Professor Goodwitch explained. "The rules are standard, based on vital statistics and aura. Once you lose 80% of your aura or become otherwise incapacitated, you will be considered defeated."

"We will come around and make a list of the teams shortly. That is all." Ozpin finished as the two professors left the stage.

Everywhere around them there was excited talking about how awesome the tournament would be. Some people had drawn their weapons to show off and others ran back and forth trying to find their friends in the chaos of the crowded hall.

"So… what now?" Ruby asked her team as she watched the swarming students go back and forth around the group.

"We have to wait for someone to register us in the tournament. Then we can go practice. Classes are canceled until the tournament is over." Blake stated as she watched Yang jump up and down, trying to look over people's heads.

"I think we shouldn't practice against each other just in case we end up facing each other in the tournament." Weiss said quietly, as she pretended to look at the crowd around them. "It'll make it more fair…"

"I agree with Weiss." Blake said. "It'll make the tournament more fun because we won't know the strategies of the other team."

"Let's go find someone to register." Yang whined as she grabbed Blake's sleeve and started to pull her into the crowd.

"Yang, they're over there." Ruby said as she surfaced from her own thoughts and pointed in the opposite direction Yang had started to go.

"Right. I knew that!" Yang said as she changed directions.

She pulled Blake behind her as they disappeared into the crowd.

"Now I have a little more of an understanding of why you two get along." Weiss said, shaking her head. She grabbed Ruby's hand, entwining their fingers before leading her toward the spot where their teammates had disappeared.

As it turned out, they may as well have waited where they were because the rest of the crowd decided to all move to register at the same time. Yang and Blake were lucky to be near the front, and Ruby found herself waiting with Weiss near the back of the crowd.

"Sooooo…" Ruby dragged out the word. "What do you wanna do while we wait?"

"I'm not sure." Weiss answered shortly.

"I know! What's your favourite color?" Ruby asked.

"Why on earth would you ask me that?" Weiss asked in return as she gestured to her white combat outfit.

"Oh… right… it was on a movie Yang took me to a while back, so it just popped into my head." Ruby mumbled dejectedly.

"Sorry Ruby, I was being… difficult to talk to again, wasn't I?" Weiss apologized with a shake of her head.

"Yeah, a little bit. What's on your mind?" Ruby knew Weiss well enough to know she tended to relapse into 'ice queen' mode when her mind was busy.

"Just thinking about training. How will we be able to avoid Blake and Yang?" She asked as the crowd shifted to let a few groups out.

"I might have an idea but…" She trailed off with a glance around at the others in the crowd.

Weiss noticed the cautionary look around and let out a sigh. It was obvious that everyone was listening to find a place for themselves to practice as well as spy on the competition. "Well, we don't have to worry about it just yet. We can start looking for a place tomorrow."

"Yeah." Ruby agreed, picking up on the listening crowd also. "I know, wanna go see a movie tonight?"

"Um, I don't think so." Weiss answered after not even a second of hesitation.

"Come on, why not?" Ruby whined, pulling down on Weiss's arm causing her to stumble extremely close to Ruby.

"Do I really look like someone who watches movies?" Weiss asked as she tried to take a step back from Ruby without bumping into anyone. Turns out she needn't have worried because Ruby had her arm in a vice-grip. "And loosen up a little bit, please."

"Well, not really, but there's a good one playing in Vale this weekend and I wanna go see it with you." Ruby said, but she didn't loosen her grip. She moved so she had her mouth right up to Weiss's ear. "Plus…"

Weiss listened to Ruby distractedly as the girl's breath brushed past her ear. There was something amazing and disconcerting about it and she felt herself blush heavily as Ruby pulled away slowly.

"So, will you go out with me tonight?" Ruby asked quietly. She had noticed the group of onlookers and knew this was about as much entertainment that you could get in a crowd waiting to put their names on a list. _Well, cant help that now._

"Well, because you put it so nicely, I guess I can't refuse." Weiss said, still trying to fight the blush off her face. Around the girls, the crowd erupted in applause and a couple of whistles. Weiss suddenly turned a shade of white as she noticed everyone was watching them.

"Time to register!" Ruby exclaimed, still holding tight to Weiss's arm.

"Ruby, wait!" Weiss objected but it was too late, Ruby had started to use her speed to punch a path through the crowd, pulling Weiss along behind her. "RUBY!"

* * *

"So I had one idea that might come in handy…" Ruby said as they approached the empty clearing they'd be using to practice the next day.

"What is it?" Weiss responded as she rubbed her thumb in a circle around the back of Ruby's hand.

"Uh…" Ruby mumbled as she became distracted with the physical contact. She shook her head to clear it and continued before she'd lose the idea completely. "What if we used your glyphs to make a sort of 3D environment during the battle."

"Well, it depends on what you mean by that."

"Sort of like a maze so we can isolate each teammate before taking them down. Like if you can trap one of them in a box, we can double-team the one outside the box." Ruby explained as she traced a square in the air with her free hand.

"As much as I'd love to, I can only pull up two glyphs at a time." Weiss thought hard about how long she'd trained to be able to call up only two. There was no way she'd be able to learn to pull up another glyph, not to mention several more glyphs, by the tournament.

"But in the entrance trail you pulled up a bunch to give me footing on the cliff." Ruby argued, remembering the vital role Weiss had played for the team back then.

"That was on a surface. If its in the middle of the air, I need to sort of make it out of the air, which is a lot harder." Weiss answered with a huff. She hated trying to explain her somewhat inexplicable semblance to other people. But she was trying to be cooperative with Ruby, so she had to try at least.

"I don't really understand-" Ruby started, but Weiss cut her off as she ripped a paper out of her book bag.

"Ruby, say this paper is one of my glyphs." Weiss let go of Ruby's hand and turned to face her. "Now, if there's something to push it up against…" Weiss placed the paper to her shoulder. "You only have to use the muscles in one arm to keep it from falling to the ground. But if there's no surface…" Weiss moved her hand vertically between her and Ruby, holding the paper with her free hand. "If I let go of the paper now, it'll fall. So what do I need to do to keep it from falling?"

Ruby raised her hand to press against Weiss's. "I think I finally understand… how fast can you pull one up?"

"Depends on how solid you want it, but approximately five per second for good glyphs." Weiss stated proudly.

"Kay… maybe we can use that to our advantage, but I'd rather not rely on it unless we get in a really tight spot." Ruby's tactician mode had kicked in and Weiss could almost see the wheels turning at breakneck speed.

They reached the middle of the clearing that was surrounded by trees. It was about a hundred feet off the path and Weiss was fairly positive nobody else knew about the place other than the other half of team RWBY. The sun had just reached its climax and the long soft grass was warm to the touch. Weiss let her hand trail through and had to admit it was a lot softer than it looked.

"Nice clearing. Are you sure you're the only one who knows about it?" Weiss asked as she let herself fall backwards onto the grass with her arms to the side as if she meant to make a snow angel in the vibrant and soft ground cover.

"Not really, but as you can tell, you have to be lucky to get here without knowing what you're looking for." She answered with a look of pride as she surveyed the beautiful trees that lined the field in a great oval.

"It's such a nice day today. What time is that movie you wanted to see?" Weiss asked, more to take Ruby's mind off of training than out of actual curiosity.

"It's late, so we can eat supper before hand." Ruby answered.

Weiss sat up as a thought popped into her head. "Ruby, come here a minute." Ruby walked over to her as she stood up. "Lets stay off campus tonight so we don't disturb whatever scheme Yang's cooked up to celebrate the end of classes."

Ruby jumped away with a shriek as an unfortunate implication worked its way into the front of her mind. "What do you- at least buy me dinner first!" Her face was red as a tomato.

"That's the idea, follow me." Weiss jumped forward and grabbed onto Ruby's hand before pulling her along back into the woods, missing Ruby's misunderstanding.

"Where are we going? Weiss?!" Ruby yelled as she was nearly pulled off her feet in surprise at the other girl's enthusiasm.

* * *

"Are you going to explain why we took a taxi from Vale to the middle of some creepy forest?" Ruby asked as she unconsciously ran her hand down one of the curves of the folded crescent rose that rested between her and the door.

"You'll see soon enough. And there's no need to worry - this forest looks dead for good reason." Weiss stated calmly as she rubbed the back of Ruby's hand with her thumb. She knew Ruby was nervous, but she really wanted to see her face when the house came into view.

"Are you going to tell me the reason?" Ruby asked. Her voice had taken on a bit of a squeak which Weiss knew meant she was a lot more afraid than she was letting on.

"It was poisoned, but don't worry! It's not harmful to us, only to Grimm and apparently the trees. And I guess I should tell you that I've been here a dozen times before and nothing bad has ever happened." Weiss said, trying to avoid giving too much away. It worked, Ruby was still on guard, but not so scared anymore. And all this she could tell by the way Ruby's hand shifted and entwined their fingers. "I bet this will be a bit new to you, but I think it'll be some fun, so…"

Ruby waited, but it seemed Weiss had zoned out as she looked out the window. Ruby had to note that in contrast to the ugly, black, crooked trees passing by, Weiss was amazingly beautiful with her long, white hair flowing down her shoulder from the off center ponytail she wore, not to mention her delicate complexion that most would call pale, but was tinted with just the most subtle light pink so as to give a healthy glow to her skin. Her crystal blue eyes were reflecting the sun that flickered through the dead branches and Ruby felt reminiscent of the snow that had only stayed for a few days before the weather turned warm again. She felt the heat rise to her face when she remembered what she'd said to Weiss out in that cold weather. Nothing had really happened since, but this was also probably the first time they had been alone since then.

Weiss glanced over to see Ruby staring absently at their interlocked hands. She had a sudden urge to pull her in for a kiss, but she knew this wasn't the time, and she prided herself on her self control. "Ruby?"

Ruby snapped out of her thoughts to find Weiss looking at her with an expression she hadn't seen on her face before. "What's up?"

"Come a bit closer… there's something I want you to see." Weiss said as she moved as close to the door as possible to allow Ruby to get close enough to look out her window.

Ruby moved closer just as the taxi hit a pothole in the road and Ruby ended up on Weiss's lap. Just as fast as she regained her balance, she almost jumped to the other side of the seat and started to apologize.

"Ruby, chill. Now get over here or you'll miss it!" Weiss commanded, trying desperately to fight a blush she felt coming on.

Ruby climbed back toward Weiss just as the car came out of the dead trees and into a large, well kept lawn. Out the window was a massive castle of a house, easily taller than the highest tower at Beacon and large enough you'd expect it to house a small village in the courtyard alone. The exterior seemed to be made of white marble stone and shaped with a Gothic fashion with spike of the marble rising and bending around points of the buildings, creating a look that was somewhat threatening even though it was obviously just for aesthetic purposes.

Weiss watched Ruby's expression turn slowly from curiosity to amazement to pure awe as she took in the amazing building her father had commissioned purely for the purpose of living in for the one week in the year he actually had to be in Vale. Weiss had always been brought along wherever her parents went for 'security purposes'. She remembered as a kid she'd always have fun pretending to be her father's body guard as she practiced her fencing skills with her instructor.

Weiss wondered what Ruby would think if she told her that her father had literally given her the place - deed and all - both as a gift for getting into Beacon and to keep her safe. Turns out he'd already commissioned another castle on the other side of the city that was closer to the dust company's Vale HQ for himself. Of course, Weiss hadn't had any objections, until she realized that her dorm was in the middle of a building filled with hunters and huntresses in training. She realized that it was very unlikely that she'd be attacked with all the others around and that she'd be at more risk if she had to travel down a deserted road at least twice a day to get to and from her classes. Weiss liked to pretend the decision rested solely on tactical sense, but it was really the girl beside her that had solidified that decision more than anything else.

Ruby let out a low whistle as she leaned back from the window and rested her head back on the seat while she closed her eyes. After a moment, she turned to look Weiss in the eyes. "So, um, is that, uh, your parent's place?"

To Weiss it seemed she was trying to decide while she was talking what question she wanted to ask. "It used to be." Weiss answered. She already knew Ruby well enough to know she'd keep asking questions until she was satisfied with the answers she received.

"What do you mean by _used to be_? Who's is it now?"

"Mine."

Ruby froze for a moment before letting out a nervous laugh. "Oh, I get it, you just have like an apartment or something inside the place, right?" When Weiss didn't answer, she started to get even more fidgety and Weiss reached out her hand and placed it on her thigh. The fidgeting stopped.

"No, Ruby… it's mine, as in I own-" Weiss paused and gestured a circle with her hand. "Approximately four hundred acres of land that includes the poisoned forest and that house."

"Y-you call… th-that a h-house?" Ruby stuttered in disbelief as the facts sunk in. "That's a castle!" She exclaimed in exasperation as she started to hyperventilate.

"Ruby! Calm down!" Weiss said, grabbing Ruby's head, forcing her to look at her. Weiss was suddenly very aware of their proximity, but again forced herself to ignore her impulses. "Take a deep breath. In…" She dragged out an exaggerated suck of air to get her girlfriend to focus and it seemed to work as Ruby copied her. "… and out. Now do it again."

She waited as Ruby slowly got herself back in control before commenting on her earlier statement. "Look, I realize this is a castle to you, but I want to put this in perspective for you before we go any further, both as a couple and more literally, inside the… castle." She cringed as she used Ruby's terminology for the house that was actually small by her standards. "This is a small house my parents used to take me to, sort of like a cottage. My house that I spent most of my time in until Beacon, was about a hundred times larger."

"Wait! So, your telling me that this is small?!" Ruby's voice had gone up another octave - if that was even possible to begin with - making her voice sound like a mouses squeak.

"Yes, but I think it'll be easier to explain inside, so if you've come to terms with the size of my house, would you please come inside?" Weiss was suddenly nervous as she realized Ruby might not have intended on going inside with her.

"Are you kidding?" Ruby squeaked. It was a wonder Weiss could even understand what was coming out of the girl's mouth.

"Oh, well… if you don't want to…" Weiss knew she had dumped too much on Ruby in too short a time span, but she still felt rejected none the less.

"Of course I wanna go in! It's a castle and I've never been inside one before!" She started to bounce again as her voice returned to something a little closer to normal.

Weiss couldn't help but smile to herself. Ruby's emotions changed so quickly it was hard to keep up sometimes.

The car stopped at the front entrance and a butler came down the steps to open the back door of the taxi. Weiss smiled at Ruby, "After you."

* * *

The inside of Weiss's mansion was just as glorious as the outside, long stone pillars lined the walls, holding up the massive vaulted ceiling in the entryway that Weiss led Ruby through. As the couple walked, Weiss explained the layout a bit so Ruby would at least have some understanding as to how the place was built.

"That way is the north wing and the observatory, but the place is useless during the day, so we wont be going there this time. And this way is the east wing where my room is. If you kept going, you'd find the staff quarters in the east tower, which is the small tower if you're looking from the outside. We'll be going somewhere only my family knows about though, so I must apologize in advance if it's a little in need of TLC." Weiss rattled off as Ruby admired everything from the stained glass that made pictures of Grimm or weapons or members of the Schnee family on almost every window to the thick soft light blue carpet brushing on their feet, to the ancient tapestries that lined the walls - most of which dated back several centuries at the very least.

"So, where are we going?" Ruby finally asked as Weiss slowed in the middle of the hall.

"Well, there's a certain privilege that comes with building your own castle." She answered slyly as she felt the wall for the piece of paper that served to hide the tiniest of holes in the marble. "There… now I just have to…"

Ruby watched as Weiss pulled out a key chain that was made of a spiral of metal. "What are you-"

Ruby's voice trailed off as Weiss pulled the decoration straight with a flick of her wrist and pushed it into the hole in the wall. A loud clunk sounded and the wall slid back and to the side, revealing a staircase. "Follow me!" Weiss announced triumphantly as she marched forward onto the stairs that were, to Ruby's amazement, made of wood, not stone.

The stairway soon opened into a spiral circling a massive crystal like structure that glowed faintly orange, casting odd shadows on the wall beside the two girls.

"Now, anything I tell you about here you have to keep secret, meaning you can't tell anyone, even Yang, okay?" Weiss said carefully as the crystal pulsed slightly brighter before dimming slightly and returning back to normal.

"Yeah, sure…" Ruby was busy staring at the crystal as the ever so subtle fluctuations made a ripple effect over the jagged surface.

"Okay, this is a power crystal. It is pure dust that naturally forms into a crystal and my families company has made a device to take it's energy without consuming the dust it's made of. In other words, renewable energy." Weiss explained for Ruby's benefit as they neared the middle of the staircase. "All the Schnee castles have at least one of these to power them. Of course, nobody, even the board of directors knows about them. My father is the one who invented the energy capture device as well as another device to create this crystal from other, much smaller crystals. This one was made with about a million or so smaller ones, but this isn't as big as the one in the other castle I mentioned earlier."

"That is actually really amazing!" Ruby said in awe as she reached out without looking and took Weiss's hand.

"Thanks, but I don't think my father would enjoy the fact I have you here after just getting to know you, so if you see him for whatever reason, we just went to my room to try on clothes. Okay?" Weiss warned as they reached another door at the top of the stairs.

"Okay… what's behind there?" Ruby asked pointing at the door.

Weiss smiled at how quickly Ruby had become used to exploring her house. "See for yourself…"

Ruby cautiously reached out and turned the door knob and pushed the door open. They climbed the last few steps and Weiss made sure to guide Ruby to the center of the pitch black room.

"Ruby, I want you to stay still for a moment. I have to go to the other side of the room, and I don't want you to trip on yourself so…" Weiss prompted as she gave Ruby's hand a quick squeeze.

"Okay… I won't move a muscle." Ruby answered slowly, obviously afraid from her lack of sight.

"Don't worry, I won't leave you." Weiss said as she made her way to the switch on the desk at the far end of the room.

She pressed it in after making sure it was adjusted for five minutes. And heard the ticking start as the mechanism engaged. The room became slowly brighter as the center of the ceiling started peeling inward and towards the walls. Sunlight entered the cone and the girls had to shield their eyes from the sun as the light blinded them temporarily.

When their eyes adjusted, they could see the whole property surrounding the castle. In the distance, you could see Vale and the ocean, and even part of Beacon on the mountainous cliffs just at the edge of view as fog started to roll in from the forever fall.

They were both speechless and Weiss re-approached Ruby to lead her to the edge of the wall that had become a giant window. Looking down at the limo that had replaced their taxi was like looking at an ant on the sidewalk. A very small ant.

"It's beautiful…" Ruby sighed as she reached a hand around Weiss's waist.

"Yeah…" Weiss answered. She never got tired of the view, but being up here for too long often made her dizzy when she had to walk back down the long staircase.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked in a hushed tone. Weiss turned to Ruby and was surprised when her lips brushed softly against Ruby's. Suddenly, Weiss lost any control she'd been maintaining and deepened their kiss. Her tongue gliding across Ruby's lip, eliciting a shiver of excitement from the girl before plunging into her mouth. Ruby's tongue met Weiss's with equal enthusiasm before the clicking of the roof moving back into place interrupted them.

"We should go to my room…" Weiss said, her mouth not working to get her thoughts completely out at the moment while she fought to get some semblance of mental control.

Ruby seemed to grow redder from the comment and Weiss almost missed her response over the clacking of the roof. "I-it'll be m-my f-first time… so… um… I… I mean…"

Weiss couldn't understand what she was talking about as she led Ruby back to the stairs to leave. Once out in the stairway, Weiss figured she might as well ask, "what were you just talking about, Ruby?"

Ruby looked really cute in Weiss's eyes as she slowly looked up at her through her eyelashes. "Please… b-be gentle… w-with me!" She quickly averted her gaze as a fresh blush burst across her face.

Weiss froze for a moment as the dots slowly connected themselves in her head. "Wait! I didn't mean…! I meant… I meant clothes!" She tried to correct as she felt her blush explode across her face.

Ruby snapped her head around to see if she was joking but she noticed Weiss's face turn not just the usual pink, but actual red and had to laugh at her own stupidity. "Sorry Weiss, it just sounded like… but now you look like your face might melt!"

"Ha, ha! Very funny, now you get to help me pick my outfit for tonight!"

Ruby almost tripped on the stairs as she spun to face Weiss completely. "Wait, I thought…" She started gesturing to her combat skirt and cape.

"Not on your life! We're going out on a date! So we're dressing up!" Weiss said as she pulled Ruby down the stairs and back to her room where she'd had the maid lay out a selection of dresses from her closet. "And I think you'd look good in blue!"

* * *

**End Note:**

**That's the end of this part, next up: The Date! Check back next Wednesday for the next chapter! Also – Remember to vote on my page for which chapter 20 you want!**


	8. Chapter 7: Arc 4 - A Dangerous Night Out

**Author's Note:**

**Hello and Welcome to Part 2 of this story arc. I want to make it clear that I am not, and do not speak a word of french, so my made up mock wine in this chapter is just that. Also I'm not very good at making fancy names up, so I rolled the dice and picked the best one of what I did come up with. Anyhow...**

**This chapter contains a dinner date, wine that isn't, a reference to a movie I had watched just before writing this (Points if you leave a comment with what that movie is! And no, the points do not have monetary value so don't ask!), and another reference to the most awesome person who we all have to thank for coming up with this anime. Also a fluffy lining around all the above.**

* * *

This was the fanciest dinner that Ruby had ever been to but that wasn't saying much. She sat across from Weiss at the table of some fine dining restaurant with a menu so long it was contained in several booklets for each course of the meal.

"Your menus, Miladies." The waiter stated as he offered the girls each an appetizer menu.

"Thank you, however we have an appointment this evening, so may I ask to bring us the menu for the main course?" Weiss asked.

Ruby admired Weiss's ability to speak in such a formal manner. Her formality reminded Ruby of her girlfriend's princess-like upbringing. And here in this candle lit setting, she even looked the part.

A stylish red silk dress that fit a bit too snugly to be legal in Ruby's opinion, accentuated Weiss's curves beautifully. Ruby hadn't even known most of those curves existed. The fabric wrapped around only one of Weiss's shoulders making it look a little less like a dress for royalty, and the bottom was something straight out of a night club. Hanging down to her knee on one side and barely passing her hip on the other, Ruby had had a difficult time to curb her surprise when Weiss had chosen the dresses for the evening. It wasn't like she hated it or anything, far from it to be honest, it was tight but maneuverable, and wouldn't get in the way in a fight. But she disliked the way people, mostly guys, looked at Weiss while they walked arm in arm to the restaurant. Ruby had thought about voicing these complaints, but realized they'd seem a bit shallow since her dress was exactly the same except it was a bluish white instead of red.

"Are you okay? Ruby?" Weiss asked as the waiter bowed and left.

"Huh? Oh… yeah, great!" Ruby answered mentally shaking herself to get her thoughts back to the present as she hitched her smile back into place.

"It's a bit much isn't it?" Weiss asked shyly, thinking Ruby was nervous because of the fanciness of the whole affair.

"Maybe a little bit… but this is what you're used to, right?" Ruby asked and Weiss nodded. "Then I'll give it a chance."

"Thanks Ruby." Weiss answered as the waiter came back with a large green bottle that he showed to Weiss who nodded her approval.

"What's that?" Ruby asked as the waiter turned back to his cart and placed the bottle in what looked like a glorified bucket with an intricate gold lace pattern around the outside and filled with ice. The waiter turned back and offered the new menus to the girls.

"Montinette Oumoulle from Patch's finest winery Black Patch, milady." The waiter announced with the air of a commercial narrator. After the girls each took their menus, the waiter left to take another couple that had just entered to their seats.

"Wine, huh?" Ruby generally didn't touch alcohol even though she'd been of age for a year already. Not to take into account the countless drunk Yang moments that had solidified her resolve to leave it alone.

"It's non-alcoholic wine, Ruby." Weiss said as she started to flip through her menu. "Alcohol tends to make me tired and I don't want to fall asleep in the movie."

"Oh… okay." Ruby opened the menu to find line after line of various items she could order, but had no idea what they were. She glanced up at Weiss who nodded to herself and placed her menu on the side of the table for the waiter to take when he came back.

"So, what would you like?" Weiss asked as Ruby turned a few pages in the menu.

"Um, maybe something… I don't know…" Ruby hesitated as she tried to make sense of a few foreign words. She completely skipped the last page because it was full of nothing but symbols and numbers.

"Ruby?" Ruby looked up from the menu with a glazed over look to her eyes that forced a smile onto Weiss's face. "Would you like me to order for you? I think there is a dish you might like."

"Ready to order, miladies?" the waitress asked as he reappeared next to Weiss.

Weiss waited for Ruby's nod before beckoning the waiter closer and whispering in his ear.

"Of course, it is my pleasure." He said as he took the menus and left.

"What did you order?" Ruby asked curiously as Weiss smiled slyly across the table.

"Oh, you'll see…"

* * *

Dinner arrived on a large silver platter with a dome over it. The waiter looked to Weiss who nodded before he lifted the cover to reveal some sort of brown soup and a selection of various mashed potatoes. In a second platter was some cooked vegetables arranged artistically around a gravy boat. The waiter bowed and left as Ruby stared wide eyed at the massive amount of food before her.

"Weiss, how can we eat all this?" Ruby asked as she distinctly remembered Weiss's objection to the massive amount of food she'd brought back when they'd shared the strawberries.

"We wont." Weiss answered simply as she used the serving spoon to take a few carrots and broccoli from the platter and poured some gravy over them. Suddenly, she had a thought as she too remembered the strawberries. Blushing, she said, "You know, the table is big enough for four. Why don't you come a bit closer so we can eat together?"

Ruby nodded with a gulp as she switched to the chair next to Weiss. Weiss had started to bring one of the carrots to her mouth when she paused. Ruby was still just staring at the food, not daring to touch it just yet.

"I promise, it's good." Weiss laughed as she ate the soft, delicious carrot.

Ruby still didn't move and Weiss was starting to get worried that she'd pushed the girl just a bit too far for one day. But she had a feeling if she pushed a little more, Ruby would snap back to her normal self.

"Here, let me help you…" Weiss said as she picked up another carrot from her plate, making sure the thick gravy covered it evenly. With her free hand, she picked up her napkin to hold below the fork to prevent any unfortunate spillage onto Ruby's divine dress. "Say ahhh…"

Ruby seemed to hesitate before opening her mouth and allowing Weiss to place the carrot inside. Weiss waited for a moment before slowly pulling her fork out and allowing Ruby to chew the food. Ruby's eyes lit up as if she'd tasted the most amazing thing in the universe. She swallowed and gasped through tears that threatened to burst forth. "How is this so good? I normally hate cooked carrots!"

Weiss had to giggle at Ruby because she had no idea how much dinner costed. For a normal person, it was a ridiculously high price, but for the Schnee family, it was actually fairly affordable considering any other food came from hired chefs. "Next try some of the orange potatoes, or the goulash."

"What's that?" Ruby asked, confused by the last word.

"The best part of dinner…" Weiss answered as she took a small scoop of the orange potatoes and poured a ladle full of the chunky brown soup on top of them. "Here, try this…"

She stabbed one of the brown chunks of meat in the soup and scooped some potatoes along with the meat. Ruby leaned forward so Weiss wouldn't have to reach as far as before and ate the tender meat and potatoes off her fork.

"That's delicious! I didn't think anything could be better than the carrot you gave me but I was completely wrong!" Ruby exclaimed, still marveling in the lingering taste of the sweet potatoes.

"Then it's my turn now." Weiss answered as she moved her chair closer to Ruby's. "Come here, you have some sauce on your face…"

Ruby leaned forward and was surprised when Weiss seemed to forget the napkin in her hand and kissed the gravy off her lips.

Leaning back into her own chair, Weiss let out a wistful sigh. "You're right, it is delicious. But we still have a dinner to finish, so lets eat!"

Ruby laughed at how Weiss seemed close and touchy-feely one minute and far and guarded the next. As she started to put food onto her still clean plate, she couldn't help but wonder. _How long until I break down those last few defenses?_

* * *

The movie turned out to be one with a team of super heroes battling a god and aliens. Lots of explosions. Weiss felt she was dressed completely wrong for the movie but Ruby was quick to point out that it didn't matter because everyone was watching the movie. Near the end, Weiss noticed how Ruby was watching the movie. As Weiss watched her, she reached over and linked their fingers together as if what she was watching was romantic. And it kind of was in that poetic way where the whole team worked so well together that they could take on an enemy that outnumbered them by thousands.

As the credit roll started, and most people got up to leave, the two remained seated as Ruby closed her eyes and listened to the music. Weiss wasn't in any particular hurry to leave, but she was getting wary of the cleaning staff who were eyeing them curiously as they were the last ones in the theater.

"Um, I think we should go so they can clean up." Weiss said as the crew started pick up discarded bags of popcorn and drinks and sweep the sticky floors at the rear of the theater.

"Wait. Just a little longer." Ruby answered and gave Weiss's hand a quick squeeze for reassurance.

Just as Weiss was starting to get really impatient, the credits ended and a small scene came on of the heroes eating gelatto in a shop that was almost completely destroyed.

Weiss burst out laughing, tears streaming from her eyes. "What the heck was that?"

"The best part!" Ruby replied laughing as she jumped to her feet. "I guess we really should go now or we'll end up making Blake worry."

"Actually, about that…" Weiss said shyly as she got up and followed Ruby out to the street. The limo was waiting for them and they climbed into the back seat.

"What's up?" Ruby asked curious as to what was going through Weiss's head.

"I… I was thinking… if you wanted, like, to… to have a sleepover?" She asked haltingly as she looked intently at her hand as if inspecting the state of her nail polish. "I mean… it's okay if you didn't want to… it's just, I've never had one before, so…"

"Sounds awesome!" Ruby exclaimed as she kicked off her shoes and rested her head on Weiss's lap. Ruby knew she was being brave, but Weiss didn't seem to mind it. Weiss wished the wine had been alcoholic to give her a little more courage than she had at the moment.

Weiss ordered the driver to take them back to the castle and she ended up staring out the window as she ran her fingers through Ruby's hair. Ruby fired off a quick group text to Yang and Blake saying that they were fine and that they'd see them tomorrow and explain then.

Sometime after they left the lights of the entertainment district, Ruby fell asleep and soon after Weiss also felt her eyes grow heavy from the massive amount of fun she'd had that day.

Weiss awoke to the sound of the engine switching off and a quick look out the window told her they'd arrived at her house. She was tempted to give Ruby a good-morning kiss to wake her up, but instead found Ruby already partly awake, looking at her through sleep lidded eyes.

"You're cute when you sleep." Ruby stated matter of factually as she sat up and put her shoes back on.

"No, I'm not!" Weiss argued as she felt her face grow warm.

"Yeah, you are." Ruby said as the butler opened the door.

Weiss didn't want to say anything with the butler right there, so she changed the topic. "I'll have them set up a room for you. Is that okay?"

"Huh? But we've shared a room all semester so far. It'd be a little weird to suddenly have a wall between us…" Ruby responded, getting a suspicious look from the butler.

"I suppose so…" Weiss agreed. "I think I have a pullout mattress under my bed, so you can sleep on that if you'd like to share the room."

The butler seemed pleased with this compromise as he let the girls into the house and then returned to his post. Weiss knew he'd be reporting this to her father, but all he'd seen was the 'we've been roommates for a few months so we're used to each other' routine. Nothing that her father had any right to be angry at.

After they'd gotten into Weiss's room, she pulled out one of the most used signs from her desk and hung it on the door before she locked it.

"What did that say?" Ruby asked as she made herself at home and tossed her shoes into a corner and plopped herself on the bed.

"I'm sleeping, so shut it." Weiss answered with a smile. "I figured we wouldn't want to be disturbed too early tomorrow morning…"

Ruby felt a blush spread across her cheeks, but didn't exactly know why. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to sleep in for once." She yawned and Weiss jumped to action pulling two hangers out of her closet.

"Here, put this on, the bathroom is the door over there." She pointed with her hanger as she kicked her shoes to the same corner as Ruby's.

Once Ruby had gone into the bathroom, Weiss stripped her dress off and put on the thick woolen shirt, making sure to leave the top buttons undone. She hated it when she felt strangled by her nightclothes.

She quickly climbed under the blanket to hide her exposed legs and stay warm. A moment later, Ruby poked her head out the door.

"Um, Weiss? There aren't any pants here…" She said nervously.

"It's okay, I figured the shirt would be more comfortable than a bra, but panties are panties." Weiss said, spurting the first semi-appropriate thing that came to mind.

"And… didn't you say something about a pullout mattress?" Ruby asked, slowly edging out of the bathroom while pulling the shirt down to hide her panties.

"That was just so the butler doesn't report this to dear old daddy." Weiss answered with a slightly harsh tone at the end of the sentence. "Anyway, I'm too tired to pull it out now, what about you?"

Ruby yawned in response, making Weiss giggle. _Seriously! What is happening to me? It's like I'm drunk!_ Weiss thought to herself as she patted the space she'd left for Ruby in her bed.

Ruby climbed in beside her and wrapped her legs around Weiss's. "Hmm… you're warm…" She smiled contentedly as they wrapped each other in a hug.

"You know, Ruby? I could quite possibly get used to this." Weiss said as she pressed the light-switch on the wall beside her bed and the room was plunged into darkness.

"Me too, Weiss. Me too."

* * *

**End Note:**

**Thank's for reading, let me know what you thought of this chapter if you want, I do realize it seems a bit like filler, but that is because it is. As for the poll, it's doing nicely on the offline side, and I have 11 votes nearly split 50/50 on this site. All I ask is that if you have a preference, you place your vote so you don't get stuck with the chapter you didn't want.**

**Otherwise, I may as well say goodbye, and look forward to next week's Double Chapter! Chapter 8 is twice the length for twice the fun, but at a new rating due to subject matter. I will ask any of you not old enough to buy rated M video games to stop reading here, even though you probably won't listen.**


	9. Chapter 8: Arc 4 - A Dangerous Night Out

**Author's Note:**

**Hello and Welcome to the first M rated chapter in Bloody Snow. This chapter is rated M for intense violence resulting in death.**

**Please enjoy the double-length Chapter 8.**

* * *

Weiss was sitting at her desk, studying like she always did when her father walked in.

"I'll be leaving shortly." He awkwardly clasped his hands behind his back, a habit he'd picked up from his years of military service fighting the Grimm. "I have decided that you will remain here as you must fulfill your duties as the next generation of the Schnee Dynasty."

He looked somewhat uncomfortable, as he looked around Weiss's room. Upon following his glance, Weiss noticed a range of things were not right. Ruby's cape was hanging over the end of Weiss's bed and an ugly looking poster was plastered to the bathroom door. Weiss's eyes found the smaller details even more interesting as she noticed her bed was made, but not flawlessly as she'd been taught. There was a small wrinkle in the sheet and the pillow seemed somehow flat. There was a half finished glass of water sitting on her bedside table with a straw sticking out. Weiss had no need for straws - they were undignified. She also noticed a small piece of black fabric that stuck out of the closed closet. Somehow, none of this seemed to bother her as her father cleared his throat to continue speaking.

"I will never know what you see in this girl, but I suggest you take some time to think about the future. Not just yours or the girls, but also of the Schnee Dust Company and humanity…" He trailed off as he gazed out Weiss's window at the setting sun. Weiss saw an emotion in his eyes that simply terrified her - uncertainty. Her father was absolute like an iron fist, never uncertain. It scared her beyond anything she knew to see him like that. He took a long breath and shook his head to clear his thoughts. "There is a war coming, Weiss. And we had best be ready when it does."

Suddenly, a ringing filled the room that sounded like Weiss's cell phone. Weiss was still staring at her father as he nodded and left. The ringing continued. From out in the hall, she heard Ruby yell.

"Weiss! Pick up the goddamned phone or I will kick you!"

Weiss was suddenly confused as to why she was just sitting there, but she didn't want to move, so she didn't. The phone rang twice more and then she felt her head connect with something.

Weiss's eyes snapped open as Ruby took the pillow she'd just been sleeping on and muffled her head from the ringing cell phone. Weiss took a moment to realize she was now situated on the floor and quickly got up and grabbed her cell before heading out into the hall.

Checking the caller ID told her it was Blake and that it was three in the morning. Weiss answered, already pissed from having Ruby kick her out of bed. "Do you know what time it is? No! Don't answer that! I know the answer, three in the flipping morning! What is wrong with you?"

There was a small whisper from the other end and Weiss had to readjust the phone to hear anything at all.

"Say that again, I couldn't hear you!" Weiss commanded, finally reining in her emotions.

"I said, Yang's been kidnapped!" Blake hissed through the phone. "Get your asses over here and help me!"

"Okay." Weiss said, strategies already flying through her head. "Is your phone's GPS on?"

"No shit!" Blake hissed back with a slight pant.

"Then we'll be there soon." Weiss said, ending the call and quickly dialing the butler. "I need the chopper ready in one minute. I need crate 65XC78L loaded and extended clips for a 108 rifle and two quick-swap mags for Myrenaster. Oh, and two coffees. One black, and one cream and five sugars. Have it ready to lift off by the time I get there."

Snapping the cell closed, she switched the lights on and started to dress in her combat outfit.

"Turn off the lights!" Ruby moaned, squinting at the already dressed Weiss. "Where are you going?"

"Get your stuff on, quick." Weiss commanded, throwing Ruby her clothes as she checked over Myrenaster. She slid the elegant weapon into its sleeve and turned to the door. "Yang's in trouble."

* * *

The helicopter was already spinning up it's blades as Weiss passed the butler. He handed her two foam cups of coffee and bowed as she and Ruby climbed up into the back seats. Immediately, the craft took to the air and started to head towards Vale. After buckling themselves in, Weiss clicked on her headset and ordered the pilot to get to the coordinates she'd sent to the navigation computer from her cell. The pilot simply accepted the order without asking questions and the aircraft started to list right.

Ruby had finally got her headset on and Weiss switched to the private channel.

"Blake called five minutes ago telling me she was following some people who apparently knocked Yang out and kidnapped her." Weiss briefed Ruby as calmly as she could, considering this whole incident was most likely caused due to her proximity to her team. "In the box beside you, there are large clips for Crescent Rose, as well as an experimental new dust I think you'll like. It ignores semblance, so basically, it's unblockable. Just don't lose any!"

Weiss was a little nervous about bringing any of the dust with her, seeing as it would also ignore her glyphs that she often used to block. She took her new cylinders and filled them with dust for her weapon. Ruby was still in shock and her hands were moving automatically. _Good, at least she's not frozen._ Weiss thought as she remembered the only other time she'd been brought on a rescue mission. She'd ended up frozen in the helicopter and the hostages had been killed long before her security force had managed to get into the compound.

This time was different. She had a plan.

"Um, Weiss?" Ruby squeaked over the mic. "Why would you bring dust that ignores semblance?"

"Remember I warned you about my family having a target on its head?" Weiss prompted. "Well, apparently team RWBY falls within that zone. And if they want to kill us, I say we shoot first!"

"You're kind of scary sometimes. Do you know that?" Ruby asked as she finished loading the last cartridge and placed it into her folded weapon.

"Trust me, I learned from the scariest." Weiss answered, thinking of her father who'd taught her almost everything she knew about both business and military tactics. She remembered her father asking the same question after every lesson. _What do you do when someone points a gun at you? _She remembered answering several times only to get a simple grunt out of her father. One day she'd been angry and answered simply. _Shoot first._ Her father had smiled at the answer, and it had later become the slogan for an advertising campaign.

Ruby was staring off into the night and Weiss tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention.

"They'll be trying to kill us Ruby, so be careful, okay?" Weiss asked, she felt worried for Ruby who most likely hadn't ever seen anyone die, let alone been the cause of their death. If she was honest with herself, she was very worried for the young girl beside her and she was feeling equally guilty for being the cause of this situation that could turn lethal very quickly.

"Don't worry about me." Ruby grumbled as she slammed a clip into her weapon. "Just make sure you do anything you have to… kill them if you can't avoid it." Ruby's tone was dark with the memory of her past and Weiss felt the seriousness in her instructions.

"Okay…" Weiss nodded as she replaced her weapon into the sheath at her hip.

Ruby nodded solemnly and looked back into the night. Weiss had never killed anyone, but she'd seen her share of crime scenes where Schnee employees had been massacred. She was starting to feel a sense of doom work its way through her as the aircraft flew high over the forest and city as they approached their destination.

The mic buzzed to life as the pilot announced an arrival in thirty seconds. Ruby looked at Weiss who nodded and unbuckled, holding onto the rails lining the cabin and opening the sliding door.

The digital display mounted just beside the door counted down four… three… two… one.

Weiss jumped out of the aircraft, holding Ruby's hand as she jumped beside her and the display flashed rapidly green.

The air rushed past the couple in free-fall for a moment as Weiss got a bearing of how high they were. Eight hundred feet and falling. Weiss waited as they fell, mentally counting acceleration and velocity as they reached the three hundred foot mark. She squeezed Ruby's hand and summoned a glowing blue glyph that slowed them as they passed through it. She noted how much they had slowed and worked her calculations.

At fifty feet, she pulled up as many of the blue glyphs as possible and the couple fell through them as if they had suddenly landed in water, except without the pain of suddenly hitting water from a seven hundred fifty foot drop.

The headsets buzzed with the voice of Weiss's butler. "Miss Belladonna has been notified to remain on standby. She is on the northern perimeter, keeping watch on the back door."

"Good." Weiss responded, dropping Ruby's hand and drawing Myrenaster.

"There are two guards on rotation in the area you just landed in. One is directly in front of you, the other is walking away to the south in line with the facilities wall. Infrared scans show seventeen inside the compound, but there is at least one underground level that could not be penetrated. The target is seemingly located on the second floor. It will be close quarters inside, so explosives are not advised."

"Thank you. I'll be good from there." Weiss answered. She wondered how many times he'd helped her father in the same way. "Ruby, get the guard heading away. Don't let him raise an alarm."

Ruby nodded, her face pale in the dim moonlight as she disappeared in a burst of rose petals. Weiss jumped on a glyph and vaulted over the guard who was looking slowly from left to right into the total darkness outside his ring of light from the bulb protruding from the wall above the door.

Behind the guard, Weiss could see he had an old school walkie-talkie as a communication device. Unless he pressed the call button, she'd be fine. She tapped him on the shoulder and tossed his radio into the darkness. He started to scream and reach for a sidearm she hadn't noticed, but she was too quick. Myrenaster pierced his heart and she used a glyph to throw his body into the darkness once his head collapsed onto his chest. No need for overkill.

Ruby reappeared and simply nodded, noticing the blood dripping from Weiss's weapon. The couple opened the doors to find an empty hallway with a set of stairs at the end.

"Miss Xiao Long is in the corner room on the South East side of the second floor." Weiss's butler announced over their earbuds.

Just as the Ruby and Weiss started toward the stairs on the far side of the building, a door opened and a guard came out. He froze when he saw the girls and before even Ruby could react, he punched a nearby switch on the wall that made sirens go off. Within a heartbeat, doors on either side of the hall opened and guards came rushing out to fill the hall. Most of them only had melee weapons, which Weiss was thankful for.

"No speed, Ruby." Weiss said as she raised one large glyph to separate them from the guards temporarily. "Let them come to you." She spun the cartridge on Myrenaster to the red dust and let her glyph fall as Ruby leveled her scythe with the guards.

Within a second, the guards were trading blows with the girls as Ruby shot round after round into the crowd, slowly thinning the number of guards with ranged weapons that were sending rounds toward the couple. Weiss kept the melee crowd focused on her. She danced with her blade, sparks flying as she deflected blow after blow, occasionally seeing the opening for a cut to the arm or leg of the guards.

Weiss felt a few hairs get brutally yanked from her scalp as one of the guard's swords missed by just not enough. Getting sick of the constant evading, Weiss retreated just far enough to load her blue dust into Myrenaster, suddenly, everyone was rooted to their places in the hall, ice covering their feet.

"You couldn't have done that… like… five minutes ago?" Ruby asked in disbelief as Weiss dispatched the nearest guard with a hard punch.

"I was hoping to not have to use it yet." Weiss answered, dispatching another two as Ruby sniped one of the guards who'd picked up a gun from a fallen comrade and was in the process of aiming it.

Ruby folded her weapon and used it to bludgeon a guard. "Don't waste your energy. I'll take care of it." Ruby placed a hand on Weiss's elbow as she wound up to knock another guard out.

She punched the guard in the face, making his head snap back with a crunch as it hit the wall. He gave a single snore as he slid to the floor.

"Fine, use your speed, it'll be faster." Weiss grumbled before she ejected her spent cartridge and replaced it with one that had explosive powder in it. Somehow, she had a bad feeling that she'd need it on the second floor.

* * *

Blake sat waiting on the roof as she'd been instructed by some guy that said he was relaying instructions from Weiss and Ruby. She watched as the lone guard jumped as if alerted to something and ran back inside. A steel door slid over the door, making it impossible to get out of. She saw the windows along the sides of the building also disappear behind solid steel and knew something was up.

She hit the callback button on the phone to hear the butler answer impatiently. "What is it?"

"Something's going on, the place went into lock-down." Blake said, hoping to get more information.

"Noted. Meet the helicopter on the east side of the complex. Goodbye." The man said and hung up the phone.

Blake couldn't really see the point of complaining, they were in a combat situation after all. She ran across the rooftops and made it to the east side just as the helicopter touched down on the edge of the field. As she approached, the pilot drew his gun on her.

She reacted on instinct, reaching for her weapon just as his head tilted slightly and he spoke into a mic. Holstering the gun, he reached beside his seat and tossed Blake a headset.

She put it on quickly to hear Weiss yelling at Ruby. "Damn it, Ruby! Just break his leg already!"

"But I hate the sound it makes!" Ruby argued back as a loud clang echoed into the mic.

A second later, a thud sounded and Weiss was talking again.

"I can't believe you'd be able to put a round through someone's skull, but not snap a bone if you had to!" She sounded like herself, but Blake had a feeling it was more amusement at Ruby's personality than frustration.

"Well at least I can knock them out with one hit!" Ruby shot back. "What was that? Like, five tries on that last one?"

"He was just being difficult."

"Sorry to interrupt, but infrared reads twenty… no, fifty… no, eighty and counting guards coming from the lower levels. ETA in twenty seconds. Recommend immediate extraction." The man's voice interrupted and Blake couldn't help but listen to the battle. She couldn't help but feel useless as she looked at the large building with all the sealed doors.

"Huhhh!" Weiss grunted into the mike. "That's the last one so far. Room at the end, right?"

"Miss Xiao Long is on your right hand side at the end of the hall." The man replied. "Reinforcements will cut off your escape route in five seconds."

"We'll worry about that when we have to." Ruby said.

Blake didn't know if she should pipe up or not, but it seemed evident that the man hadn't told her teammates that the exits were sealed. "Ruby, Weiss, it's Blake. All exits are sealed. The building is in lock-down."

* * *

_Damn it!_ Weiss thought as she ran with Ruby to the end of the hall. "Shoot the lock." She ordered as they came within range.

Ruby's excellent marksmanship didn't fail as the door burst open and they rushed into the room. A man dressed in black jeans and a long sleeved shirt greeted them with a smile as he took a step back from Yang who was tied to a support post in the middle of the room.

Weiss cut the ropes holding Yang and she ripped the gag out of her mouth. A thunder of footsteps sounded the arrival of the horde of guards.

"Great rescue, now where's the rescuing part?" Yang asked, as she converted her gauntlets that were easily mistaken for a fashion accessory into the weapons they were meant to be.

Ruby, having studied hard to earn the right to lead team RWBY, had an idea that was, admittedly, extremely stupid, but might just get them out alive - if they were lucky.

"Weiss, use your glyphs to block the door. Overlay them if you can to make it a thicker barrier. Yang, get ready to go rage monster on them. Just before she does, Weiss, use your ice thing to stick everyone in the ground, then we'll both follow Yang and knock out the ones she missed." Ruby thought it might just work, but her hopes were shattered when the butler replied over the mic.

"Contact count is now approximately four hundred and twenty. By your estimated resources remaining, you would only be able to get half way to an exit before you run out of everything useful."

"Well, if you have a better plan, then lets hear it!" Ruby yelled into the mic as the footsteps were suddenly quiet. A lone pair of shoes slowly walked down the hall.

The mic was silent, and Weiss had an interesting idea, though it might get her seriously hurt. She carefully weighed her options as the footsteps rounded the corner.

"Oh hello there, little red!" Torchwick said, swinging his cane around his index finger. "So nice of you to drop in and kill so many guards. It's a lot cheaper than paying disability pensions, you know."

"I should have known it was you who did this!" Ruby asserted angrily. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw and heard Weiss hiss into her mic.

"Fucking Bastard!" Yang spat, cocking the firing chambers of her gauntlets, her eyes flaring red at the same time as her semblance came out like a wall of fury.

"Now, now, no need to be angry. I was simply the delivery boy, you might say. The real man to thank is standing right behind you!"

Weiss finished her instruction just as Ruby spun her head around and Torchwick stopped his cane from its rotation.

Time seemed to freeze for a second and then several things happened all at once. Torchwick pulled the trigger of his cane-gun. The shot was aimed center-of-mass at Ruby. Yang, having anticipated Torchwick's move, jumped to get Ruby out of harms way. The man clad in black threw some type of ninja star dust crystals at all three of the girls, which Weiss blocked with a glyph as she spun the dust chamber on her weapon to the explosive chamber.

Time suddenly snapped back to full speed and the man in black charged at Weiss who delivered a solid kick to the man's genitalia, leaving him on the ground in silent pain. Yang succeeded in knocking Ruby out of harms way, but Torchwick's shot hit her in the side, causing a mini explosion that ripped out a piece of her rib-cage.

Before Torchwick could recover from the recoil, Weiss trapped his cane in a useless position with another glyph and lunged past Ruby to hit the wall beside the steel covered window with her explosive infused sword.

As she had guessed, the wall blew apart violently. Several chunks of the concrete battered her and tore up her sword arm as they flew by.

"Ruby!" Weiss yelled as henchmen started to swarm into the room.

Ruby was already several steps ahead of Weiss and tossed Yang out the hole to Blake who had arrived just as the wall had been blown apart.

Weiss grabbed Ruby's hand as they jumped out the hole and the henchmen opened fire. Blake easily avoided it with her semblance as she carried Yang, who was losing blood fast, to the helicopter.

Weiss called up all the glyphs she could as they ran, giving them blind spots to avoid the gunfire in.

Just as the team made it to the helicopter, Ruby spotted several henchmen carrying guns too large to fire any bullet she knew of.

"Guided RPG's!" The pilot yelled over the mic as one of them fired the deadly missile straight at the helicopter.

Ruby's semblance kicked in and she was engulfed in rose petals as she aimed her sniper at the incoming missile.

Weiss prepared to block it with a glyph, though she wasn't confident it would be of much help at the close range, but she needn't have worried. Ruby's one shot hit the missile dead on and it exploded just far enough away for the team to feel the heat of the explosion. Through the flames the person who fired the rocket fell dead with a single bullet hole on his forehead.

"Infrared is offline." The butler announced over the mic, sounding worried. "Does anybody read?"

"We're fine, just a little cooked." Weiss replied as she and Ruby hopped up onto the landing skid and the aircraft sped away. "Pilot, drop flares on my mark!"

Weiss watched the ground as Ruby and Blake started work on Yang's first aid. Suddenly, she saw at least twenty rockets launch at the same time and she knew she had a very slim chance to block one, maybe two, if they didn't fall for the flares.

"Now!" She ordered and the sky behind them lit up with hundreds of white burning balls that all but one missile turned toward. "Everyone, brace yourselves!" She ordered as she waited for the lone missile to come within range. Once it did, she made the best glyph she could to stop the deadly explosive. It was barely enough as the explosion rocked the aircraft, setting off every alarm in the cockpit as red lights flashed everywhere.

Slowly, the pilots got it back under control and the craft shot up beyond the range of anything but the best anti-air missiles.

"Pilot? We need to be at the hospital, like five minutes ago!" Ruby said over the mic. Her voice was even, monotone. As if all life had left her and a machine had taken over.

Weiss turned as she climbed into the cabin and shut the door. She saw Blake and Ruby leaning over Yang, applying pressure to her wound. Blake had tears running down her face, and Ruby was staring ahead at absolutely nothing. Yang had a peaceful look on her unconscious face, like that of a fallen angel. An already large puddle of blood slowly grew around the three girls.

* * *

The three teammates waited silently outside a set of double doors marked employees only as Professor Ozpin talked to the nurse at a nearby desk. The girls had been there for the last three and a half hours since Yang disappeared behind them for emergency surgery. Every so often, a nurse would come by and offer them coffee, which they accepted gratefully, not that they needed it to stay awake.

"I see…" Ozpin said to the nurse. "In that case I would like to be kept up to date on any changes through the Vale scroll network. I do have a school to run after all."

"Of course." The nurse replied, typing furiously on her computer.

Ozpin walked back to the girls who had not moved a muscle since sitting down and spoke in a quiet voice so as not to disturb the other people waiting across the room. "I understand the basics of what happened tonight. The police have informed me that the situation has been resolved, and therefore you will not be punished."

The three exchanged quick glances. It hadn't ever occurred to them that it was against Beacon's rules to engage in any combat that may result in a fatality. All of them knew there had been many more than one.

"However," Ozpin continued after a moment of thought. "I would like to debrief each of you." Blake opened her mouth to protest, but Ozpin held up his hand. "I will do it individually after we find out the results of your teammate's surgery. But now I must go, if you'll excuse me."

He walked away down the long hall that led to an elevator bank and disappeared around the corner. The three girls sat quietly, all absorbed in their own thoughts.

Ruby was stony faced, staring at a single spot on the wall. Weiss guessed she was in some form of shock, but didn't know what to do. Blake was silent with tears slowly leaking out of her eyes and running down her face. Every now and then, she'd bury her face in the still blood soaked brown leather jacket Yang had arrived in. It was no longer brown, but a dark shade of red, with even darker patches that occasionally flaked off as the blood dried. Blake had flat out refused when the hospital staff had offered to dispose of it.

Weiss had a bandage wrapped around her arm that the doctor had insisted on even though she could barely feel what he called several deep cuts and persistent bleeding. She had also flat out refused when they insisted on checking her for any other medical imperfections after hearing Ruby tell Ozpin that she'd been the one to blow a hole in the wall with dust so they could escape.

Weiss didn't really know how she was feeling. One way she could describe it was numb. Although that was most likely the narcotic working. Her mind was still back in the room with Torchwick, constantly recalculating, trying to figure out how the events could've played out differently. But try as she might, only one truth managed to remain at the front of her mind. _If Yang hadn't saved Ruby…_

She shook her head roughly to stop that train of thought. No good would come from it and she'd already gone that route countless times in the silent waiting room. Ruby turned her head to look at Weiss's sudden movement. Her eyes were glazed from not blinking for far too long, and she obviously was still deep in her thoughts.

Weiss had already tried checking her scroll just to see the news reports on the criminal's compound stating that a mercenary had staged the attack that resulted in twelve deaths. From there, the reports tended to go one way or the other. Either naming the mercenary a murderer, to praising 'him' for cleaning up the streets.

Weiss didn't know what to think. Both were true, but she couldn't help but wonder if she really had taken it too far when she'd resorted to killing the guards. The only thing that kept her from being truly remorseful for her actions was her teammate that lay at deaths door in an operating room.

Ruby looked back at her spot on the wall and Weiss hoped that she was doing okay for the thousandth time since she first saw her unemotional response to her sister's injury. The steady noises of the hospital continued to hammer away at Weiss and she found herself getting up. Her back was stiff and her legs felt like lead, but she couldn't sit listening to heart monitors beep and machines hiss as they forced breath into people in the emergency ward just beside the waiting room any longer.

"Where are you going?" Ruby asked. Monotone. Her silver eyes that had so often danced with emotion while they were fixed on Weiss, now dark and hard as a smith's anvil.

"I need air." Weiss answered, wondering if she'd be able to escape the hospital without getting lost.

Ruby just nodded quietly. Weiss felt as if their date from the previous night had been from a previous life. So much had changed, so fast. She found the elevators and waited for one to come by. The door dinged open and she suddenly couldn't decide where she wanted to go. It was a shorter trip to the ground floor, but the roof was probably quieter.

She stepped out the door and walked out across the roof. A helicopter landing pad on another building connected to this one by a bridge. The sun was bright and the air was cold on Weiss's face as she walked to the edge facing the ocean.

The view was amazing, but Weiss couldn't seem to appreciate it no matter how hard she tried. All she could think about was the room where everything went wrong.

She watched the fog on the ocean slowly dissipate as the sun rose in the sky. Her pain medication was wearing off and she was starting to feel an itch on her bandaged arm. She'd already promised herself she wouldn't use her aura to heal the wounds so she could keep the scars as a reminder of her failure. The doctors had argued with her, but she was a Schnee, so it goes without saying the doctors were highly outmatched.

She tore off the bandage to find her arm scabbing over. She traced the places where a larger chunk of the concrete had bit into her and tenderly assessed the burns she'd received from the dust's back blast. Nothing was major and right now, none of it was painful. She knew that would change if she didn't get more meds, but maybe the pain would be helpful for taking her mind off of the horrible night.

Walking to the edge of the roof, Weiss looked down to the street where the people mulled around like tiny black ants and cars drove by like beetles with an odd sense to travel only at ninety degree angles. She knew she was less than thirty stories above the chaos, but if felt higher. She stretched out her arms to the side as a slight breeze brushed her hair back behind her. She breathed slowly out, finally calming down from the fresh cool air.

"NOOOO!" A scream behind Weiss startled her and an arm pulled her back from the edge of the roof, making her land hard on the cement. A gash in her arm split open and she felt her head explode as it bounced off the concrete, her vision flashing white from the impact. She gasped at the sudden pain that seemed to come from everywhere at the same time and she felt something heavy pin her to the rough roof. "Don't fight, Weiss!"

Weiss's vision came back into focus to see a terrified looking Ruby sitting on her rib cage and leaning against her hands on Weiss's shoulders.

"I am not losing my team!" She screamed so loud she might have even been heard from the street below. Breathing hard, she collapsed sobbing, her hands making fists out of Weiss's outfit as her tears flooded out of her eyes.

Weiss was slow to respond in her drug induced and dazed state. Her hands finally found Ruby's back and she started rubbing circles as the girl continued to cry. Weiss tried to talk, but her throat was to dry, so she ended up coughing, making Ruby jump off her chest.

"I'm not sorry!" Ruby sniffed as she watched Weiss prop herself up on her elbows.

"Damn, Ruby. I was just enjoying the breeze." Weiss said with a sigh, slowly sitting up and checking her arm. The bleeding wasn't bad and it was already starting to scab over again.

"It looked like you were going to jump!" Ruby argued uncertainly. She crossed her arms, those steely eyes boring into Weiss as she felt her head gingerly and inspected her fingers to make sure she didn't have blood on them.

"Sorry…"

Ruby let her breath out and sat down beside Weiss, rubbing her eyes to rid them of the grainy feeling that comes from sleep deprivation and crying. "I didn't mean to overreact, but I can't lose Yang, or Blake, or you. I just can't lose anymore. I need to be stronger…"

Weiss didn't know how to react. Ruby seemed so much older right now than she ever had before. She wondered what had happened to make Ruby act so differently. She knew it was a bad idea to ask, so she said nothing.

The two girls watched the ocean shine from their seats and after several minutes, Ruby let out a long breath. "I know you have bad memories from your family being a target… and I get that." She started haltingly.

"It's my fault Yang got hurt." Weiss stated dryly as she continued to watch the slowly moving waves so far away.

Ruby let out a bark of a laugh. "You and Blake could share a mind sometimes." She said with a sigh. "I just got finished explaining how it wasn't her fault Yang was kidnapped from the club they'd gone to."

"How would she even think that?" Weiss asked, happy for any distraction from her own self pity.

"You know how it is… those closest to an accident always find a way to blame themselves." Ruby responded, once again sounding much older than she was. "Anyway, it's not your fault Yang got hurt either. If it's anyone's fault, it's mine."

"I would like to know how you figured that one out." Weiss commented, glancing over at Ruby who was staring at the sky above them.

"Well, it's sort of a bit of everything." Ruby started, she took several deep breaths before continuing. "I didn't warn her that she might be in danger, considering she's on your team, and she's my adopted sister."

"I think that's more my fault than yours. I should've said something to the whole team straight after we were put on a team." Weiss argued.

Ruby ignored her interruption and continued as if she hadn't heard. "I didn't take the lead on the rescue mission. If I did, I might have realized that we'd have a better chance if we got Goodwitch or Ozpin to back us up."

"But it's my fault I rushed you. I was afraid of them taking someone who I actually care about." Weiss shot back. "Yang can be a bit obnoxious sometimes, but she always does the right thing. Most of the time, anyways."

Again, Ruby ignored her. "And finally, if I hadn't fallen for Torchwick's trick, she wouldn't have had to save me… she shouldn't have saved me."

"No! Ruby!" Weiss said rather loudly, making Ruby's head snap around to actually listen. "She did the right thing! If she hadn't pushed you out of the way, you'd be missing at very least your heart and most of a lung!"

Ruby stared at her for a long time until she felt she should continue.

"I've gone through everything that could've happened back there. The only thing that could've happened was Yang saving you, or you getting killed." Weiss said in frustration, she knew an answer was there, but she just couldn't see it.

"If you're right, then I think Yang made the wrong choice." Ruby said sadly, putting her chin on her knees as she hugged her legs.

"How could you even say that?" Weiss asked in disbelief. This was definitely not the Ruby she knew.

"Have you ever lost someone close to you?" Ruby asked in response. Her words sounded choked as if she was using all her willpower to keep from crying.

"No…"

"I lost my mom when I was four. It was a Beowulf attack. I don't know who my father is, so it was just me and mom alone in the house. It was late and I was ready for bed when they got into the main floor of the house. She put me in some kind of hole in the floor, but never got the board completely closed." Ruby said, her story rushing out as if it had been contained far too long. "I watched as she took them on without any weapon. There were too many. They tore her to pieces as I hid in the hole she'd put me in. The next morning, a big hairy man came into the house yelling if anyone was alive. I guess he heard my crying because he came and found me. He was only working for the nearby town, and he ended up dumping me at the orphanage. I met Yang and her dad adopted me. Since then, they've been my only family, and I can't lose them like I did my mom."

"Ruby…" Weiss was speechless as she finished her story. "I'm sure Yang will be fine. They have the best surgeons working on her after all."

"Thanks for trying, but I know her chances." Ruby said sourly.

"And you also know that Yang is horrible at math, so she'll probably misunderstand what the doctors are expecting and prove them wrong by pure dumb luck!" Weiss said seriously. Ruby smiled over at Weiss and moved a little closer.

"I really want to kiss you right now." Ruby said with a sigh.

"Well, no more meds for you!" Weiss laughed for a second, then turned serious. "I sort of went to the dark side last night, are you sure you still want to be with me even though you know what I'm capable of?"

"Weiss, everyone has times that they stray from the right path, what's important is that you realize where you made the mistake, and get back to where you want to go. Do you want to be a killer? Or do you want to be someone who helps her friends and doesn't let anything or anybody get in the way? The way I figure it, last night could be either be about you and me killing people on our way to find Yang, or it could be you and me saving Yang at the cost of a few criminals."

Weiss thought about Ruby's words for a moment and realized that there was no difference objectively between the two statements, but they were completely different. "We saved Yang…"

"See? Not so bad when you put it in perspective." Ruby laughed as she planted a soft kiss on Weiss's cheek.

"I hate to break up the love fest, but Yang's in the ICU." Blake said as she walked across the roof to her teammates. "She's still out, so they cant be sure she's okay, but she's alive at least."

"What do you mean they can't be sure?" Ruby asked apprehensively.

"She lost too much blood. They say it's a eighty five percent chance she has permanent brain damage." Blake said as tears started to roll down her face again.

Ruby put an arm around Blake's shoulders and Weiss looked back out to the ocean before repeating her earlier comment. "Like I said, Yang is horrible at math."

* * *

**End Note:**

**First of all, thank you for reading and I hope you'll stick with me as there is yet more fluff and action to come.**

**In regards to the poll on my page (mentioned in almost every end note so far), I may extend the time it's open for a chapter or two, but please place your vote as soon as possible if you wish to have a say in which final chapter you want. Since this chapter is rated M, I will give a little more of an explanation between the differences in the two chapters here.**

**Lemon: This chapter is mostly what it sounds like. Mainly character development in the beginning that turns to lemon that lasts the remaining ~2/3 of the chapter (remember chapter 20 is a double-length chapter). Obviously, there is some character development throughout the lemon of the chapter as well.**

**Plot: Mainly character development throughout the whole chapter, with no actual large plot-lines. (If you watch other anime, then think of any fan-service episode and you've basically got the jyst). The only difference is the appearance of more characters and fluff instead of lemon.**

**I hope that will clear up a few questions you might have, and I will be updating Chapter 0 with known information hopefully sometime in the next couple of weeks.**

**Again, thanks for reading and look forward to next Wednesday!**


	10. Chapter 9: Arc 5: Advanced Uses of Aura

**Author's Note:**

**Well, I'm sorry it took so long, but here's Chapter 9. The intro of the second-to-last plot arc in Volume 1.**

**This is more of a transition chapter between the previous arc and this one, so really it's not part of any arc but it fits closest to arc 5, so that's where I put it.**

* * *

Team JNPR walked slowly down the hospital corridors, trying to find the sign that the nurse at the information desk had told them about. Jaune led the team with certainty down a hallway to their right as Pyrrha followed close behind. Ren hung back with Nora nervously attached to his arm. She hated hospitals, but Ren had insisted she come to support her friends. In the end she'd agreed on the condition that she could hang onto him the whole time. So far she hadn't disappointed.

"See? I told you it was this way." Jaune announced as he turned another corner to find himself staring at the entrance of the ICU. The ward was locked behind a decontamination area and several security guards were standing along the wall beside the area.

As they approached, the guard by the intercom stepped forward. "Sorry, nobody is allowed in right now."

"We were actually looking for our friends who have a teammate in there." Pyrrha told him with her usual air of authority.

"Oh, you're from Beacon… I think they left for the cafeteria just a few minutes ago." He said. Jaune nodded to him and took two steps away before spinning and coming back.

"Would you be able to tell us how to get there?" He asked, making Pyrrha smile. At least he was getting over himself enough to ask directions.

The guard pointed down the hall and told them how to get there. With a thanks, they were off again.

Ren was quiet as always, but it seemed he was more so than normal in the hospital. Nora clung to his arm and wondered if she was squeezing too tight, but she couldn't speak just yet. If she did, she was convinced an army of doctors would try to run tests on her again. Ren was the only one who knew of her fear of hospitals, and the only reason he'd known, was because it just so happened that he'd met her in the hospital when he was undergoing similar tests.

It was a little ironic that Ren had met Nora while their parents were trying to figure out how to get Nora to shut up and get Ren to talk. Both sets had been convinced something was wrong with their child and had taken them to the hospital to see if there was any treatment available. By the time the doctors had arrived, they'd walked into the waiting room to find Ren talking and Nora listening in contrast to what they expected. Ren couldn't remember everything about the day, but one thing that had stuck was their argument where Ren told Nora she talked too much and Nora told Ren he didn't talk enough. One of Nora's parents told Ren later on that before Nora met him, she had set a record by talking for twenty seven hours straight, and they were worried she'd choke to death if she continued to talk while she ate.

"What are you smiling about?" Nora asked angrily looking up at Ren. She quickly glanced around to make sure the doctors hadn't heard her before looking back at her boyfriend.

"I was remembering how I met you." Ren answered as they stepped into the elevator behind the rest of their team. Pyrrha and Jaune seemed to be making purposely loud conversation as if they were painfully aware of the private one going on not two feet away. "And it's fine guys, you don't have to not listen."

"Um… how many negatives was that?" Jaune asked with his usual apologetic smile that meant he missed the meaning of Ren's last comment.

"Ren's right. It doesn't matter." Nora said. Her anger at being in the place seemed to be slowly building and Ren knew he'd have to diffuse her before something bad happened. Nora was unpredictable, especially when she was angry.

"I was just remembering how I met Nora." Ren supplied to add context. "It's a pretty funny story when it comes down to it."

"So how did it happen" Jaune asked as he waited for the elevator doors to open on the fifth floor.

Nora squeezed Ren's arm tighter, and Ren had to laugh. Even though she still had a fear of hospitals from the experience, it was in the past and nobody could argue that anything was wrong with either of them now.

"Well, when I was young, around three or four, I didn't talk, so my parents decided I needed to get my head checked out." Ren started. Pyrrha cocked her head to the side as if she couldn't tell how that had anything to do with the story. "Well, Nora was brought in for the exact opposite reason, and they stuck the two of us in a waiting room while our parents filled out the paper work."

"So where's the funny part?" Jaune asked as the door dinged and slid open to another hallway. A sign directly in front of them pointed them left they set off.

"It's coming. Anyways, Nora was bouncing around sort of like that time when Cardin spiked her orange juice with red-bull," He paused both Jaune and Pyrrha flinched at the memory. Nora had very nearly destroyed their dorm room as she bounced around that day. "And she started talking to me because she was bored. She kept telling me I didn't talk enough and I eventually snapped and told her she talked too much."

"And did she quiet down?" Pyrrha asked. The question earned her a scathing look from Nora.

"No, she ended up repeatedly telling me I don't talk enough, and I ended up repeating that she talked too much." Ren said as they entered a massive hall that was filled with small tables and surrounded by various fast food places. "That's when the doctor's came in. Nora saw them and stopped talking, and I thought that was because I'd won the argument, so I kept talking. The doctors were confused because what was happening was the opposite of what their paperwork said, so they called our parents in and we've been friends since."

"No kidding." Jaune commented, pointing to where he spotted Ruby's team eating.

"To be honest, I think Nora's parents just needed to get some peace." Ren joked, earning him an elbow in the stomach from his girlfriend.

"Yeah! And your parents had to make sure you were still alive!" Nora shot back.

Pyrrha gave the couple a look that told them to drop it as they came to their friends' table.

"Hey, how's Yang doing?" Jaune asked as he offered Pyrrha the chair at the table and pulled up one from the next table as Ren grabbed two others for himself and Nora, which was made difficult by Nora's refusal to let his arm go.

"She's stable." Blake answered dryly. She was staring at a cup of coffee that she hadn't touched.

"They say the drugs will wear off in the next few hours." Weiss chipped in. She alone seemed unaffected, except for the slight redness surrounding her eyes. "Then we have to wait for her to wake up."

"_If_ she'll wake up." Ruby finished with a sigh. She seemed completely defeated as she looked at her teammates across a full glass of milk.

"If there's anything we can do, say the word." Ren said.

"Thanks, but I think we'll be okay." Ruby said, raising her glass to her mouth just to put it back down without taking a sip.

The group sat in silence for a several minutes until a quiet tapping drew Ren's attention. He looked down to find Nora tapping her foot nervously against the chair's leg.

"Sorry, but Nora doesn't like hospitals." Ren said as he got up and put their chairs back. "We'll wait outside for you guys." He added with a nod to his teammates.

"Hold on for just a sec." Ruby said as she noticed the nurse walking up to the table.

"Miss Rose?" Ruby nodded in response. "Miss Xiao Long has woken and is currently getting assessed. You can wait for her in her room if you'd like."

"Thanks." Ruby said as the nurse left. "Think you can hang on a bit longer, Nora?"

Ren felt Nora tighten her grip for a second and then she nodded as the rest of the group got to their feet.

It took them five minutes to get to the doors of the ICU and another ten to get through the two sets of doors as the space in between was only large enough to fit one person, two if they were squeezed against each other like Nora was to Ren. Once all of them had gotten through, they waited in the rather large room that Yang would soon be returning to. A nurse who was just leaving the room mentioned that there was normally a lot more medical equipment in other rooms the same size when Pyrrha commented on it.

They were only waiting about thirty seconds when Yang was pushed in on a wheelchair. Her whole chest was heavily bandaged and she winced in pain as the nurse helped her get back into the bed. Once her IV was connected and the intermittent hiss of the machine started, the nurse left the room.

Silent tears were streaming down the faces of all the girls except Weiss. Jaune seemed to be fighting an internal battle with himself as he noticed bloody bandages in the clear bio-hazard waste bin at the back of the room. Ren was looking at the ground and patting Nora's hand on his arm.

Weiss fought valiantly not to cry as she looked at Yang who had her eyes closed and looked like she was in severe pain. Yang let out a breath that felt like a hiss and Weiss felt her tears roll down her face. Slowly, Yang opened her eyes to look around the room at her friends.

"Man, you guys really know how to make me feel like I'm on my deathbed." She croaked in a hoarse whisper.

Weiss felt herself crumble, only to be caught by Ruby. Both girls were now audibly crying and laughing at the same time. Pyrrha watched as Blake walked up to Yang's bed as if in a trance.

"I think we'll be going now. Get well soon, Yang." Pyrrha said, earning her a three fingered wave from Yang. Jaune followed Pyrrha, as Nora and Ren quietly closed the door behind the team.

"Hey, Blake." Yang croaked, looking at her faunus teammate. "Since when did you have cat ears?"

Ruby and Weiss managed to finally calm down enough to join the other two. Yang looked at the two of them as if she was seeing them for the first time.

"When did you two get so buddy-buddy?" She asked, as her eyes scrunched up like she was trying to remember something important.

"Yang, are you okay?" Ruby asked thickly.

"Other than the excruciating pain coming from where the doctors did their thing, I'm fine." Yang grimaced as another wave of pain swept through her. "But they told me I might have some side effects from the pain meds, so I told 'em to go light on them." She took a few steadying breaths before continuing. "So are you going to answer my questions?"

Ruby and Weiss exchanged a quick glance and Blake took a deep breath before speaking. "Yang, what is the last thing you remember?"

Yang thought hard for a moment. "Torchwick taking a shot at Ruby."

"What about before that?" Weiss asked.

"I think I remember most of it, but there are some gaps." She replied slowly. "Like I remember Blake running off a while back because she was in the White Fang, but I can't remember the details, so… a cat, huh? Cute."

Blake blushed heavily and hid her face in her hands. Weiss and Ruby stood awkwardly watching the other half of their team. Even with the lighter dose of medication, it was obvious that Yang's brain to mouth filter hadn't made it through unscathed. Yang turned to them and Weiss took a conscious step away from Ruby.

"Are you two still flirting with each other? Or have you finally hooked up?" Yang said, impatience heavy in her gravelly voice.

"Yang!?" Ruby started, surprised at Yang's bluntness.

Yang closed her eyes and shook her head slightly. "Sorry, it's the drugs they gave me mixed with the pain. But I'm fine, so just answer the question."

"Define hooked up." Weiss said, stepping back to Ruby's side and putting her hand on her leader's shoulder.

Yang smiled and let out a breath. "I don't know why, but I'm really happy I don't have to deal with your sexual tension-"

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! What do you mean by-" Ruby interrupted.

"Never mind, Ruby. I'm just glad you're okay." Yang sighed as she closed her eyes. "I think I'm gonna take a nap now, though."

"Okay. We'll leave you to rest." Weiss said, squeezing Ruby's shoulder to let her know she was ready to leave.

"We'll be back in a bit, okay?" Ruby said, reaching down and touching her adopted sister's leg.

"Sure…" Yang mumbled, already drifting off.

"I'm going to stay here." Blake said, pulling up the lone visitor chair and sitting so she was within reach of her teammate.

Ruby nodded and let Weiss guide her out of the room and the ward. The couple found themselves on the roof and before they knew it, both were crying and holding each other tightly.

"I'm really tired right now." Ruby admitted with her eyes closed as she leaned on Weiss's shoulder. Her breath was already slowing as all the stress of the night finally started leaving her.

"I'll call the chopper and let Blake know where we went." Weiss told Ruby as she sent off two texts that she was too tired to check for spelling errors. She got responses letting her know that Yang would be fine and that the chopper would be there in five minutes.

Weiss looked into the sky and slowly felt her eyes close as the warmth of Ruby in her arms lulled her into half-sleep.

* * *

**End Note:**

**Thanks for reading! Come back next week for the real start of Arc 5!**

**There's only one week left for the poll on my profile, so cast your vote if you haven't. It's going down next wednesday when I post the next chapter and I will post the results the following wednesday. For those of you who missed it, please check the end note of Chapter 8 for the details of what I meant by Plot vs. Lemon. The twitter version is they involve different sets of characters and parallel each other. Both are only character development but one involves lemon.**


	11. Chapter 10: Arc 5: Advanced Uses of Aura

**Author's Note:**

**Well, another week, another chapter. This one concludes the intro to this story arc and gets things going for next week, so look forward to that. This is also the half way mark, meaning I've published exactly 50% of the chapters in volume 1. Anyway, enjoy!**

* * *

Blake woke up in a panic. _I have to save Yang!_ She thought, jumping to her feet in the dark room as her faunus night vision brought her surroundings into focus. A machine gave a loud hiss before returning the room to silence. A bed with a person sleeping soundly was right beside her and she calmed down as she watched her teammate's chest slowly rise and fall in rhythm with her breaths.

Sighing, she sat back into her chair. This was the sixth or seventh time she'd woken that night from the same horrible nightmare that was the memory of the previous night. She sat silently, her hand on her teammate's as some irrational part of her brain told her Yang would disappear if she let go.

"Blake?" Yang whispered, her mouth dry because the doctors had not allowed her to drink anything since she'd woken from surgery.

"Sorry I woke you. Go back to sleep." Blake said. She felt guilty for waking her by accident, but she was happy she was able to hear Yang's voice.

"Not tired anymore." Yang replied after taking a deep breath.

"You should sleep. The more you recharge your aura, the faster you can heal and get out of this place." Blake said her usual argument. Yang just let out a huff and shifted slightly as she turned her head back to look at the ceiling.

"I've been trying to remember something…" Yang said after a minute. The hissing of the machine the only other noise in the small room.

"What is it?" Blake asked, submitting to the fact that they were both completely awake now.

"Well, don't take this the wrong way or anything, I mean, I'm still kind of out of it, but…" She seemed unable to get the question out and quickly ran out of breath. She coughed as she sucked more air in, but Blake squeezed her hand quickly to let her know that she wasn't going anywhere. When Yang still seemed hesitant to continue, Blake decided to give her a push.

"Yang, whatever you have to ask, I'll answer if I can. I'm your teammate and…" She trailed off as her thoughts jumbled momentarily in her sleep deprived brain. "… and that means I'll be here whenever you need me."

"Okay… well, I can't remember what we were doing after we registered for the tournament. All I know for sure is that I got kidnapped at the end of the night and got shot sometime during the rescue." She explained.

"We went out to a new club you wanted to go to." Blake answered shortly.

"Like on a date?" Yang asked and Blake almost fell out of her chair in a fit of coughing as she choked on the air she was breathing.

Once she'd gotten herself back under control, she looked at Yang who was simply staring back. Her face was empty of anything that indicated her previous comment was a joke. Through the silence, Yang seemed to grasp the answer that Blake was thinking, but not brave enough to say.

"Well, that clears that up." She sighed wistfully, sounding like she was trying to put as heavy a hint in the sigh as possible.

Blake smiled slightly as she took the bait. "Just because we weren't on a date doesn't mean we can't go on one next time." Blake had to admit there was a sort of 'forbidden love' feel to the situation; them being teammates, not to mention it wasn't that long ago that the faunus started being recognized as equals to the rest of humanity. And more people than not still saw them as animals.

"Are you sure?" Yang asked hopefully. She was looking through the darkness at where she must have thought Blake was. Blake laughed and leaned forward, bringing her lips to Yang's forehead.

She brushed her lips across Yang's smooth skin and felt the hair of the blonde's bangs tickle her upper lip as she moved back to her seat. "On one condition…" She paused simply to make sure Yang was paying attention. "You get back to sleep so you can get better and get out of here quicker."

Yang moaned in frustration and looked back up to the ceiling. "I'm too awake right now. Help me fall asleep again?"

Blake's smile widened at her teammate's pushy attitude. _At least that's back to normal._ "Alright, what can I do?"

"Well…" Yang paused. Blake couldn't be sure, but she swore Yang's face took on a blush. She was proved right when Yang continued. "I did feel more relaxed when you kissed my forehead."

"What?!" Blake was more than a little speechless. It was like Yang was playing out one of the scenes in the books she'd bought earlier that week.

"Maybe I'll fall asleep if you aim for my cheek?" The question seemed quite brazen, even considering Yang's forward personality.

Something in Blake softened as she considered the proposition. Yang was off the narcotics, so she was in her right mind, and she was asking Blake to kiss her. Blake leaned over her teammate's cheek. Just before she closed the last inch of space, she whispered just loud enough so Yang could hear. "You know, you're about as blunt as a pickup truck."

Yang turned her head so fast it caught Blake by surprise. The real surprise was just starting for Blake, as Yang pressed her soft warm lips to her teammate's and just as quickly, wrapped her arms around her neck to prevent any escape.

Blake felt a slight prod at her lips and she reacted the way her body wanted her to as her brain was struggling to do anything other than stay frozen. Her lips parted and she felt Yang's tongue slip inside her mouth and felt her tongue start to mirror Yang's movements.

A shiver shot down her spine as her brain slowly worked through the cloud of emotions exploding through her head. She wanted to… she didn't know what, she couldn't hold onto any thoughts except the feeling of Yang. Yang's lips moving against hers. Yang's tongue dancing with hers. Yang's soft but powerful arms around her neck.

Then, new thoughts entered. Warmth, not just from the kiss, but radiating from Yang's whole body. Suddenly, she felt cold and dizzy and light headed. She was getting tired and she felt her eyes droop as she continued to kiss her teammate who certainly didn't care she was a faunus as evidenced by one of Yang's hands reaching up and stroking her cat ear, making a new shiver run down her spine and stop between her legs.

"Mmmm…" Yang moaned into Blake's mouth just as Blake felt her whole body slacken with exhaustion that was probably more due to lack of oxygen than actual tiredness.

* * *

Blake opened her eyes to find Yang's arms still wrapped around her. She watched Yang sleep for a minute before her memories caught up to her.

She couldn't remember much from the previous night, but she was fairly certain she hadn't climbed into the bed beside her teammate. Nor was she certain when she had taken her bow off. She shifted out of Yang's grip carefully so as to avoid waking her at the ungodly hour. Once she'd resumed her visitor chair, she noticed the strip of black fabric clutched in one of Yang's hands. It was wrapped around her fingers as if she'd purposely wanted to touch it as much as possible.

Blake smiled as she wondered to herself why she felt so tired, and how Yang had managed to sleep with her pressed against her injury. She jumped a little as she suddenly noticed Yang's eyes open and watching her.

"Tired?" She asked, sleep making her voice raspy.

"How did you know?" Blake responded with a smile at her injured teammate.

"Don't be mad, okay?" Yang said as if she was expecting to be yelled at. When Blake gave her no reaction, she sighed and blurted the rest out as fast as she could. "I used your aura to heal, so I should be better now, and I know I should've asked, but the timing was pretty bad and I didn't want you to misunderstand."

Blake took a minute to absorb what Yang had said to her. "Hold on, what do you mean by that?"

"Have you read the book you got Weiss about advanced aura use?" Blake shook her head in response. "Well, if someone has lowered their mental defenses completely, it's theoretically possible for someone with depleted aura to leech off of that person if they are in contact."

"Oh, so that's why…" Blake was suddenly feeling stupid for hoping Yang actually wanted to…

"Wait! That's why I thought you'd misunderstand!" Yang said quickly, sensing her teammate's dark thoughts. "Yes, I used the situation to my advantage. But that doesn't mean that that was my reason for doing it… it just sort of came to mind part way through…"

Blake felt the heat in her cheeks mirrored on Yang's face. She was trying to put something into words to tell Yang, but failed. The door swung open and a doctor walked in looking at a clipboard.

Looking up, he noticed Blake sitting in the chair. "I'm sorry, I need to examine Miss Xiao Long. If you'll please wait outside…"

"Of course." Blake managed as she rushed out the door. Once in the hall, she kept walking straight to the cafeteria. Some iced coffee was just what she needed right now.

* * *

When she returned, Blake found Yang sitting up and talking to Weiss and Ruby who had their backs to her. Since the door was open, Blake walked up beside them as Yang explained what the doctor had told her.

"He was amazed. He couldn't believe his eyes when he went to re-bandage me and he found out that the wound was completely gone!" Yang kept her eyes on Ruby and Weiss, as if she hadn't seen Blake either. "He asked me how I'd managed to regenerate my aura so quickly to heal, so I just shrug and say 'I guess I'm just that awesome'!"

"That or you used someone else's aura to do it." Blake commented. Ruby and Weiss both let out a squeal of surprise as they jumped literally a foot in the air at the sound of Blake's voice.

"Don't do that!" They both yelled in exasperation as Blake sat down beside Yang who was now clothed, looking like she could leave any second.

Yang burst out laughing at her teammates. "You guys are so entertaining, you know that?"

"I aim to please." Blake responded with a smile as Yang continued to laugh and Ruby and Weiss started to smile a little from Yang's contagious laughter.

Yang calmed down and looked past Weiss out the door. "When are they gonna bring those release papers? I wanna go now!"

"Be patient, Yang." Ruby reprimanded. "They have other people to take care of. You're probably not on the top of their priorities."

"Besides, not everyone knows how to use their aura. Those people can't just fix themselves after all…" Weiss started, reminding herself of Blake's earlier comment. "Blake, did I hear you correctly? That Yang used your aura to heal?"

Blake hesitated for a moment, it felt like something too personal to just talk about, but something in Weiss's tone told her there was something important that she was missing. After the internal debate ended, Blake decided that she should tell her teammates about what happened, so she nodded slowly.

Weiss looked on in disbelief. After she seemed to get over the shock, she turned to Yang. "Do you realize what you've done?"

"Uhh, I healed?" Yang said, sounding slow like she did when she was trying to explain her school work.

"Yes, but at what cost? You of all people should know the risks with doing something like that!" Weiss was starting to gear up and both Blake and Ruby moved into action just as a nurse walked in carrying some papers.

Ruby clasped her hand over Weiss's mouth as Blake stepped around them, blocking them from view.

"Are those the release papers?" Blake said as she heard Weiss struggle against Ruby's grip.

"Yes, I just need a signature from the patient, then she's good to go." The nurse answered. She walked to Yang and gave her a pen and pointed to a line part way down the page.

As Yang signed the paper, Ruby removed her hand from Weiss who'd shut up when she found out the nurse had come in the room.

"I think we all need to have a little chat back at the dorm." Weiss said darkly, as she punched in the number for a taxi. "Front doors of the hospital. Five minutes." She clicked the phone shut and walked out of the room to leave Ruby and Blake wondering what she was so upset about.

* * *

The ride back to Beacon had been a quiet one, only Weiss had spoken instructions to the driver as she tapped the arm rest on her seat. As they walked through the school, students would occasionally recognize Yang and offer their congratulations on her recovery. Yang replied shortly to them and continued along with her silent team.

The dorm was exactly how they'd left it. The usual pile of garbage in the corner, piles of books everywhere, and the bunks untouched since they'd all been there last.

"Since Yang obviously read this book, how much did she tell you?" Weiss asked as she picked up a book off a nearby pile. It took Blake a minute to realize Weiss was addressing her.

"I wouldn't exactly put it like that…" Yang said as Blake searched for an easy answer to the question.

"Then how would you put it?" Weiss demanded, fury in her voice.

"Weiss, calm down!" Ruby interjected as Weiss slammed the book down on the desk making a loud bang echo like a gunshot through the room.

"It's okay, Ruby." Yang said as she sat on the edge of Blake's bed. "I sort of skimmed the beginning of a chapter that looked interesting. It said something about lowering mental defenses and using physical contact to share aura. So that's what I did to heal myself."

Weiss huffed out an exasperated breath. "Do you have any idea what you've done? What you could've done? Of course not, you just skimmed the beginning!" Weiss gestured for the rest of the team to take a seat as she took the desk chair and started flipping through the book's index. "Here, I'll explain to everyone, so we don't have another episode of stupid happen."

She stopped and slid her finger down the page before starting. Everyone was watching her as she flipped to the next page and then back before reading out loud.

"Aura is the energy that a soul produces. It has various abilities that depend on the specific person. Among these are semblances…" Weiss turned to the next page as she muttered "blah blah blah" under her breath. "The most common is the healing ability."

She looked up at her team. "That was the introduction. Now, I'll go to the part Yang skimmed over."

She flipped half way through the book and turned a few more pages before continuing her explanation.

"Through advanced manipulation of will, a soul can theoretically absorb energy from other sources as evidenced by the effect of sleep. There is a way, therefore that one individual's aura can theoretically absorb energy from another individual via a leeching effect."

Yang was nodding as she remembered the part she'd read. Weiss frowned at her and flipped a few more pages into the chapter.

"However, very little is known about this form of connection. Leading experts hypothesize that a connection is formed between individuals, creating a sort of pooled aura where both individuals use the exact same source of energy. Expanding on this…" Weiss trailed off as she scanned the rest of the paragraph.

She skipped a few more pages before settling on one of the paragraphs. "In the few documented cases of a successful aura share, there was a one hundred percent success rate of pooled aura as a result. As with normal rules of aura, if the aura in the pool becomes excessively depleted, symptoms such as nausea, fatigue, partial or complete temporary paralysis, or death are common. The only difference is that under these circumstances, the two tethered to the aura pool will inadvertently battle over the last reserves of aura, creating a reasonable certainty that one of the two will cease to live. As there is no data on this part of the connection, it is pure speculation. Many experts agree that it is likely that if one of the partners die, it will create a sort of leak in the aura pool that prevents regeneration of said energy."

Weiss slammed the book shut and back to the desk. Ruby was still digesting the academic terminology in silence, shock slowly coming into focus on her face. Blake seemed to be whiter than the sheet of her bed and Yang had her mouth hanging open and tears rolling out of her eyes.

Since nobody said anything, Weiss rolled her eyes and decided to be the first to start talking. "Well, it can't be helped now, but I suggest you do your research before doing something you don't fully understand."

"Yang, did you really do that to Blake?" Ruby sounded like she was hoping it was all a joke.

Yang simply nodded, closing her mouth. Tears continued to roll down her face as she turned to look apologetically at Blake. Blake had to admit that she was a bit surprised by the passage, but somehow, she knew something was different from the second she woke up.

"Well, it can't be helped now." Blake almost couldn't stop the next words that wanted to come out. Once she blocked those words somewhere deep and dark, she looked at the rest of the team. "I've read another book like that, and I think it's right, but there is something that it fails to mention."

"What would that be?" Ruby asked carefully, not wanting to open up yet another can of worms.

"I think the connection can be broken safely under certain circumstances." She felt heat come radiating out of her cheeks and quickly hid her face behind her hands as she continued. "If our mental defenses are completely down, and someone was to separate us physically while our aura's were active, it should separate the aura's again…"

"That's a great idea! Lets-" Ruby started just to be cut off by Weiss.

"But it won't work, will it?" Weiss interjected, looking at Yang and Blake sitting beside each other on the same bed.

Blake shook her head and Yang looked down at her hands as Blake responded. "No, it would only work if both of us were equally defenseless. The only reason Yang was able to do anything in the first place was because I let my defenses slip and she was strong enough to push through the rest."

"I'll see if my father can get me any advanced research in the area." Weiss said. She then pointed at her two teammates, caution heavy in her voice. "And you two better be careful until we can get this sorted out. Meaning you stick together, and be extra careful of your surroundings!"

Weiss left the dorm, Ruby trailing behind her. Blake looked over at Yang who was watching her tears drip from her chin into her lap.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Blake asked, her hand cupping Yang's face and tilting it so they were looking into each others eyes.

"I'm so, so sorry." Yang said, her voice thick from the tears she had yet to shed.

"Shhh…" Blake said, wrapping her arms around her teammate and bringing her face closer. "Just because there are risks, doesn't mean that there aren't rewards…"

"Hmm?" Yang asked just as Blake's lips met hers and she felt herself grow immediately hot from the contact. When Blake moved away, Yang's lips tried to follow her just to be met by Blake's finger.

"If we're going to try to break this connection, we'll need the help of one other person…" Blake said, as a short list of possible candidates ran through her head. "How exactly do you feel about Ruby intervening in a private moment?"

"Wha- Where are you going with this?" Yang stuttered, a blush rushing over her whole face so she looked like a tomato with blonde hair.

"That will work perfectly." Blake replied, already forming a plan as she stood up and dragged Yang to her feet. "Let's go get something to eat. I'm hungry."

"You're not the only one…" Yang mumbled, the distinct feeling that Blake was planning something. Blake felt the intense heat radiating off Yang's hand and smiled. _Perfect._

* * *

**End Note:**

**Again, thanks for reading! I will be posting the next chapter on wednesday like usual, but I am considering moving it to sunday or monday to work around my schedule better. I'll let you know in the next end note if anything changes, or if I decided to keep it the same.**

**Also, thank you everyone for voting for the last chapter. I'll tally up the votes and post the result next week.**


	12. Chapter 11: Arc 5: Advanced Uses of Aura

**Author's Note:**

**First off, sorry for the day late post. Things are busy, so I didn't manage to get to it till today. And as much as I like writing (the next volume and a parallel arc), the publishing will have to wait till I finish my homework for my university classes.**

**Anyway, have fun finding out more about the aura link and what Blake hopes will shut Yang up! (Hint: That doesn't happen. Ever.)**

* * *

"Blake Belladonna. I would like to talk to you about the events that took place prior to Yang's abduction." Ozpin said as he approached Yang and Blake in the cafeteria. "I have already talked to Ruby and Weiss, and the doctors have informed me that Yang does not remember her actions in the affair. All that's left is to get your perspective."

Blake looked at Yang who waved at her dismissively. _Go ahead, I'll be fine._ A voice whispered inside Blake's head, making her jump a little. That was definitely not her thought. She shook off the feeling of unease that had settled into her head and nodded to Ozpin. He spun on his heal and started walking with Blake in tow. Without looking over her shoulder, she somehow knew Yang was watching her walk away. _Nice legs. _The voice whispered again.

Blake shook the new sentiment away and sighed inwardly. _This is going to be a long day._

Less than five minutes later, Ozpin asked Blake to have a seat as he produced a plate of assorted dehydrated fruit from a mini fridge in the corner of the office. Blake's stomach growled at the sight of the food and she started to eat a few dehydrated berries as Ozpin sipped his usual cup of coffee.

"Well, let's get right down to it. I'm simply putting together the events of the evening Yang was kidnapped, leading up to the morning of the rescue. According to my calculations, Yang was in captivity for approximately four hours, before being broken out by the other half of your team. Is that correct?" Ozpin paused as Blake nodded her response. "Then, everything else is fairly straight forward."

Ozpin set his scroll down on his desk and pulled up a holograph of the dance club Yang had been taken from. He moved the structure aside and pulled up a second structure that looked very similar to the one Weiss had put a hole in.

He scaled the second building smaller and moved it out of the way as he made the club larger. "Is there any particular reason you and Yang went to this specific club that night?"

"No, sir." Blake responded. "Yang just wanted to check it out because it's a new one she hadn't gone to yet."

"I see…" Ozpin said as he made a note on some stationary he'd pulled out of a drawer. "And is there anything that you saw at the club that might have indicated the presence of criminals or criminal activity?"

"Well, there were a few more dealers outside than normal. But other than that it looked normal." Blake said, a memory of Yang yelling party before pulling her into the dance crowd popping into her memory.

"Very well." Another note on the paper. "Would you be able to walk me through the events prior to Yang's kidnapping, or your realization that she was missing?"

"Sure." Blake answered, maybe Ozpin would be able to tell her what she'd done wrong.

"Then lets start with how the criminals managed to lure Yang away from you." Ozpin prompted as he started jotting notes again.

"How did you-"

"I can only assume that is what happened. After all, you two share a bond that indicates that Yang's abduction wasn't a betrayal. And before you ask, no. I will keep your secret as it may prove useful in the days to come." Ozpin said in his typical mind reading fashion. Sometimes he came off a bit creepy, but other times it was easier for him to just figure out what couldn't be said out loud.

"Well, we were dancing and we'd both had a few drinks but I was getting thirsty again, so we went to the bar when a group of guys came out of the crowd and got in between Yang and me. When I'd finally pushed through them, I saw Yang looking unconscious and being carried away by some guy in a black suit." Blake felt tears start to form at the corners of her eyes and Ozpin handed her a tissue just as she was about to ask for one. "I got out of the club and followed the car. That's when I called Ruby and Weiss."

"I see. So, you followed the car to the compound, Weiss used your phone's GPS to locate you and Weiss's butler acted as an intelligence officer." Ozpin kept scratching away at the paper even though he was looking into Blake's eyes. "I have one more question. Do you have any idea why the criminals would kidnap Yang specifically?"

"Weiss said that it was because her family is being targeted, that they also targeted our team." Blake responded. Ozpin stopped writing his notes and put the paper away.

"You must be very careful when jumping to conclusions like that." Ozpin said carefully. "As it now stands, the criminals that were captured when the Vale Police raided the compound have no affiliation with the White Fang or any organization that has put a target on the Schnee Corporation. There is the obvious exception of the Schnee Dust Company branch, but I believe that is merely coincidence, as no damage has been done to any other branch of the company according to Mr. Schnee's report on the matter."

"So, Weiss wasn't the target?" Blake asked incredulously.

"I believe it is safe to say that Yang was not kidnapped because of her proximity to Weiss." Ozpin agreed with a nod. "That being said, I advise your team to be cautious about your… surroundings…"

"O-Okay." Blake stammered at the gleam in Ozpin's eyes as he seemed to drill into her.

"That will be all, Blake, you may return to your team, but one word of caution: do not talk about this incident more than you have to. We still don't know who the real target is, or why Yang was chosen as a suitable target."

"Yes, of course." Blake answered, heading to the door.

"Also, a word of caution for the near future. Be careful about how you choose to solve the problem between yourself and your partner. It might be worthwhile to let it play out, temporarily at least."

Blake left the office, a feeling of dread spiking down her back.

* * *

"Hey, Blake! Over here!" Ruby yelled from across the cafeteria as Blake finished paying for her tray of food at the counter.

"How was Ozpin?" Weiss asked as Blake sat down in the last seat at the table.

"Doom and gloom." Yang answered from her position with her head laying on the table.

"How would you… right." Weiss started with a shake of her head. "Side effect, right?"

Blake nodded with a glance around the cafeteria. It was mostly empty except for the few other students who were either not entered in the upcoming tournament or done practicing for the time being. "We need to talk somewhere off campus… somewhere nobody will overhear us…"

"What's up?" Ruby asked as they waited for Blake to finish her tuna sandwich.

"Just something Ozpin said to her." Yang replied, her forehead still stuck to the table.

"This is going to get really annoying, you guys." Weiss said looking from Yang to Blake and back again.

"I'm still confused about it." Ruby admitted to the group as she started to fondle the folded weapon on her back.

"We'll go over everything once we get somewhere away from ears." Blake said between mouthfuls. Yang grunted in agreement and Weiss sent a text.

"I have a place in mind." Weiss said to Ruby's questioning look. "I hope you guys don't get sea sick."

* * *

Weiss turned the key in the small boat and slammed the accelerator forward, lurching Blake into Yang even though they were both belted into their seats. Ruby clung to the railing on the side of the craft and Weiss kept one of her glyphs behind her so she could stand and see over the inclined bow.

The group sped away from the shore at breakneck speed, the mist of the water spraying into the air with the density of fog as they left a massive wake behind them.

"Why _exactly_ did we go for a _boat ride_ when its almost winter out here?" Ruby yelled over the roar of the boat's motor and the wind whipping her short hair into a miniature tornado.

Weiss's hair was streaming like a ribbon behind her as she yelled back her answer. "Because Blake didn't want to be overheard. And I wasn't able to go out over the summer even though I wanted to."

Weiss glanced over at her other passengers who seemed to be in wordless conversation before turning the boat to head farther down the coast and south of Vale where the forest filled with Grimm took over.

She cut the motor as she looked around at the empty water. They were now easily two miles out from the shore and there wasn't a bird in sight. Weiss locked the wheel in position to keep a straight path and put the throttle on low to keep moving farther south.

"Okay, if we want to talk, now is as good a time as any." Weiss announced to the group as she joined Ruby on her bench. Her arm automatically wrapped around the cloaked girl's shoulder and she looked over at Yang and Blake who were about half an inch from sitting on each others laps.

"Okay, well this is what it is…" Yang started.

"We have that bond that Weiss read about earlier," Blake continued.

"And we know how to get rid of it." Yang finished the sentence as if they'd rehearsed on the way here.

"What's with you two finishing each others sentences?" Ruby asked, confused by the constantly changing speaker.

"They rehearsed it on the way here." Weiss answered with her suspicions.

"Not so much rehearsed," Yang started.

"As talked about how to tell you" Blake continued.

"That we can sort of have a conversation in our heads," Yang said.

"And read each others thoughts in general." Blake finished with an angry glare at Yang. "There's a time and place, Yang!"

"Fine." Yang pouted, crossing her arms, but looking back at Blake mischievously.

"Well, I'll only believe this when I see it." Weiss said stubbornly. "How about a test? I'll tell Blake something that only Ruby would know and then without even looking at each other, I want Yang to tell that something to Ruby who will then tell me just to make sure it's the same."

"Well, it seems like sound logic." Blake said.

"Wait, I just thought of something!" Yang shouted over the conversation.

"No, I am not helping you cheat on exams!" Blake said, pushing Yang over to Ruby at the bow. She approached Weiss at the stern.

"Just tell her 'Gem Tower'." Weiss instructed in a barely audible whisper.

"Okay." Blake said.

Weiss watched Yang lean over and whisper in Ruby's ear.

"What?!" Ruby screamed, still listening to Yang. As soon as Yang straightened with a smile on her face, Ruby spun to face Weiss. "You want to 'ravage me sexually' on top of what?!"

"OWWW!" Yang yelled, clutching her head as if someone had hit her with nothing less than a lead pipe. "Fine! I added the whole thing except the tower!" Yang's injury disappeared just as suddenly as it had come and she muttered something about getting even.

"Gem Tower?" Ruby asked, confused.

"It's the name of the tower I took you to." Weiss explained. "I couldn't think of anything else that they wouldn't know… well that is appropriate for such company at least."

"Okay, so now that we cleared that up," Blake started.

"Let's get into what Ozpin told Blake to make her drag us all here" Yang continued.

"On such an awful day." Blake finished.

"You actually agree with me?" Yang asked in mock shock, her hand covering her mouth as she looked at Blake wide eyed. "Sorry, won't happen again… for a while at least." Yang apologized, quickly looking down at her hands.

"This is really weird, could you just act normal?" Ruby sighed in exasperation.

"But this is really fun!" Both Blake and Yang answered in protest.

The boat's engine revved just as they reached the top of a wave, sending Yang and Blake a foot off the deck to make them come crashing down in a tangle of limbs.

"And so is that." Weiss said, releasing the glyphs that had secured her and Ruby in and upright position.

"Alright," Yang conceded.

"Fine, we'll try to act normally." Blake added.

The boat threw them into the air again and they landed with an audible thud.

"We're off to a bad start, aren't we?" Yang asked. Blake simply shook her head and started relating the events of her interview to the rest of her team.

* * *

_Today was a very long day._ Blake thought as she collapsed into her bed.

_Yes, it was. _Yang thought back as she jumped up into her bunk that teetered on top of the books that acted as support pillars.

_Can you not give me five minutes of quiet? _Blake wondered at the blonde's insistence that she take part in every single thought that goes through her mind.

_Nope! I've got to think back or else you might get funny ideas like mentally punching my brain! _Yang argued, sending an image of her holding her head on the boat along with the thought.

_I said I was sorry, what else do you want me to do? _Blake thought back.

_How about you help me cheat in exams? _Yang asked for probably the thousandth time since the thought had occurred to her.

_What if I did this instead?_ Blake thought as she recalled the most graphic sex scene from one of the erotica she'd read. She switched the two characters with herself and Yang, and imagined certain feelings that she'd only read about to put them along with the mental images. Blake prided herself on her amazingly detailed imagination, and she was aiming to kill with this scene. She sent the package of amazingly detailed porn over to Yang who let out an audible gasp.

_Oh, my god! Oh my god! Oh my god! _Yang thought as she was forced to watch the scene unfurl. Blake stopped it, thinking Yang didn't want to see it, but as soon as she did, Yang thought back sharply. _Put it back on! I was watching that!_

_You have a dirty mind, you know that? _Blake asked as she fixed the imagined scene back into place.

_I'm not the one who thought this up, am I? _Yang retorted. _Also, there's no way your boobs are that big!_

_Oh, my god! That's what you take from this? _Blake asked, incredulous at Yang's ability to remain as blunt as a doorknob under any circumstance. _You are such a man!_

_Then I'm your man, sweetheart. _Yang answered without missing a beat. _Oooh! That looks fun, can we try that?_

_NO WE MOST DEFINITELY CAN NOT! _Blake shouted back in her head, regretting her failed attempt to get Yang to leave her alone.

Yang was quiet a moment as if Blake's outburst was enough to shut her up. _Well, you don't have to cooperate, you just have to lay there…_

_I will kill you Yang, hole in aura or not! _Blake responded, trying desperately to make the thought seem one hundred percent serious.

_Fine, but you'll do that with me eventually… because I'm not going anywhere. _Yang taunted in response.

_I probably will… but there is one place you're going… _Blake gave up her fight. She was too tired to argue right now anyways.

_Where? _Yang wondered innocently.

_TO SLEEP! _Blake shouted back to Yang's childish attitude.

_Awww, mmoooommm, do I haaave tooo? _Even Yang's thoughts came out whiny sometimes.

_God damn it Yang, just shut up! I need to be alone in my head for a little while! _Blake thought back, her weariness lain heavily on the thought.

_Okay… _Yang conceded defeat and kept her thoughts to herself. For a total of four seconds. _So are we gonna try that next time Ruby and Weiss are out on a date?_

_Persistent. _Was the only word Blake could bring herself to think in response.

_Are we? Please? I really wanna try that! _Yang whined in her thoughts.

_Well, it might help us figure out how to get rid of this fucking bond so I might actually get some peace again. _Blake thought with as much acid as possible.

_Oooh, kitty gawt angwy? I know you love me, so why resist the awesomeness? _Yang thought back with as much swagger as she could muster.

_Because tomorrow is round one of the tournament! _Blake thought as loudly as possible.

_Well, tell me that five minutes ago why don't you? _Yang's thought came back quick, loud and a little panicky.

_I thought you knew! _Blake couldn't remember a time when Yang had ever forgotten something that involved punching something or someone.

_Missing memories, remember? _Yang answered with an audible huff to go with the thought.

_Riiiighhhht… _Blake had completely forgotten the side effects of Yang's surgery since she'd been completely normal otherwise.

_Well, goodnight Blakey. _Yang thought happily as she calmed herself down for the night.

_Goodnight, Yang. And don't call me that. _Blake reprimanded halfheartedly.

_Awww, it's okay, because of all the love that we showed each other in that fantasy of yours! _Yang responded, her thought a taunting whisper.

_God damn it Yang!_

_Love you too, Blake._

* * *

**End Note:**

**Thank you for reading, and again, sorry I was late. Look back next wednesday and I'll (as long as everything doesn't go crazy again) have the next chapter up. I'm aiming for early this time rather than later.**

**Also the total for the last chapter poll is as follows:**

**Online:**

**We have 5 Tuckers. (RvB reference)**

**We have 4 Bosses in the lowest level of the Dungeon.**

**We have 3 fangirls.**

**We have 3 people that may want to see someone about their tendency towards self-harm.**

**We have 1 random guy in a white van trying to offer you candy.**

**For a total of 10 votes Lemon. 6 votes Plot.**

**Offline: (Yes this was the boring poll)**

**I have 4 Lemon.**

**I have 5 Plot.**

**For a grand total of...**

**14 Lemon. 11 Plot.**

**Lemon Wins the Chapter 20 spot!**

**We are deeply sorry for the loser as you will now sit on a dusty shelf for the rest of eternity. Goodnight Everybody!**


	13. Chapter 12: Arc 5: Advanced Uses of Aura

**Author's Note:**

**Well, another week, another chapter. I'm coming up on midterms, so I may take next week or the week after as an off week where I won't post a new chapter in order to study. (I'll still post an author's note to let you know if it is an off week.)**

**Let the tournament commence!**

* * *

The day of the first round of the tournament dawned brightly, with icy cold wind that carried dark gray clouds. Everyone kept glancing up to the fluffy grayness as they walked outside to the meeting place for the first round of the tournament. Nobody knew exactly what to expect, but if it was anything like the initiation ceremony, it was bound to be interesting.

"Students! If I could have your attention." Glynda Goodwitch stood in front of the crowd on an elevated podium, her voice amplified through speakers set at intervals around the forest's edge. "This is the first round of the combat tournament. The rules are as follows."

The crowd grew quiet, except for the few spectators that were standing off to the side to support their friends. In total, there were probably about a hundred students that were participating in the tournament, meaning approximately fifty teams. Everyone was keeping the other teams at arms length as they tried to whisper last minute advice to their teammates.

Team RWBY was the only team that stood shoulder to shoulder as they listened to the rules. Blake and Yang were silent, but with their new mental link, you wouldn't be able to tell if they were discussing tactics anyway. Ruby and Weiss stood hand in hand, the simple pressure from the contact enough to keep them focused on the fight ahead.

"And remember, there are Grimm in the forest, and they will not hesitate to kill you. Do not hesitate to kill them, or help out your fellow students should you notice them having trouble. Remember, you will still be classmates tomorrow, even though you are competitors today." Goodwitch finished to a few random claps from the audience.

Ozpin stepped up to the stand as Goodwitch stepped down. He stood there, slowly looking over each and every student before him. Ruby swore that his eyes rested on her team a fraction of a second longer than the rest, but before she could think too much about it, he started his speech. "This is round one. There will be two more rounds after the winter break. Only eight teams will move on to round two. This round is much like the initiation, with one exception… each team has been sent an image of two other teams who are also attempting to find one of two treasures whose images have also been sent. Your objective is to find one of the objects and bring it back here. There are a total of eight, one for each team that will advance to round two. There are four groups and two treasures per group. You will all be monitored, so I advise you fight honorably lest you wish to be punished severely."

"Round one of the tournament has started. You may leave at your own pace." Goodwitch announced from the ground behind the podium.

Most of the students were still gazing ahead as they hadn't realized someone had said go.

Yang and Blake hadn't waited and rushed off into the treeline and disappeared behind the massive trees.

Ruby and Weiss started walking into the trees as other teams started doing the same. They had just passed the first tree of the forest when a flash of movement caught Weiss's eye. Instinctively, she threw up a glyph between Ruby and the movement as a grunt of pain came from the other side.

Ruby had been looking at the images on her scroll and hadn't even noticed her attacker. On the screen, was a picture of Sky and Dove from team CRDL. Ruby snapped the scroll shut and drew her weapon as Weiss dropped her glyph. Behind it was the whole of team CRDL, their weapons drawn.

"My how I've waited for this!" Cardin laughed as he walked forward brandishing his mace.

"Poor child's about to get his dreams crushed." Ruby muttered as she switched her weapon to scythe mode.

Weiss drew her blade and made sure she was ready to toss up a glyph should any of the others attack out of turn. "Ruby, wanna fly?"

"Thought you'd never ask!" Ruby exclaimed, using her semblance to rush at Cardin and throw him back with a hard hit from the blunt end of her scythe.

Weiss made a glyph and jumped on top of it, forcing it's collapse to the ground. Ruby joined her in a flash and Weiss released the glyph, sending them fifty feet above the canopy. Weiss drew up one glyph at a time as she and Ruby jumped synchronously from one to the next back down to the ground a mile into the forest

"Where do you want to go now?" Weiss asked as Ruby pulled out the scroll again.

"Somewhere where there's water. Look here, in the background there's a bit of river, like its just off the water." Ruby deduced as she studied the photo. "This other one looks sort of rocky, so I think it'll be farther in toward the cliffs."

"Let's check it out. Maybe we'll get lucky and be home before lunch." Weiss said as she remembered her forgotten protein bar on the desk in their dorm.

* * *

_We should find out what we're looking for. _Blake thought as they ran side by side past dozens of trees.

Yang pulled out her scroll and quickly found the pictures of their opponents and objectives. _Looks like a box with a symbol on it._

"Let's see." Blake held out her hand as the team came to a stop in a miniature clearing just large enough for a handful of people to lay down in.

Yang handed the scroll over and Blake had to stifle a smile as she saw Cardin and Russel as one of their opposing teams and made a mental note not to let Yang go all out against them, otherwise getting Yang to write an essay may be the least of her worries.

"Hey! I heard that!" Yang burst out, glaring at her teammate. _Either way, we have bigger problems than those losers… like finding the thing._

Blake just nodded as she examined the two pictures. One was obviously close to a cliff, which meant that's where most of their opponents would be looking. The other was in a dead looking patch of forest and Blake had a feeling she knew where it was. _Take a look at the second one._ She handed the scroll back to Yang who took a closer look at the second photo.

"I don't know what I'm looking at." She admitted, zooming into the photo and back out again.

"See the left side, how it all looks dead?" Blake pointed out. "I think I went past there as a shortcut to Vale the last time I visited Sun before he left."

"Is it far?" Yang asked as she shaded her eyes while looking at the sky.

"About six miles from here." Blake said with a slight pang of concern inadvertently poking its way through to Yang.

"I'm fully healed. I'm good to go." Yang said with a smile as she drew her signature aviators out of her pocket and placed them on her face. "Lets say we have a little race? Winner gets to pick the losers punishment. No restrictions."

"You do realize that I am a lot faster than you on unpredictable terrain, right?" Blake asked, questioning how much Yang wanted to lose.

"Under normal circumstances, but I have my Cecilia which means I'm more than a match for you and your reflexes." Yang taunted with a lopsided grin spreading across her face.

Blake really didn't want to take the bait, but couldn't help it. "Oh, you're on! Lets see how your weapons fare against good old fashioned skill!"

_Bring it on, Blake! And I hope you like the taste of my dust!_ Blake got the thought just as Yang took off again with a blast of her gauntlets. Blake sprung into action, easily keeping pace with Yang. They had six miles, and Blake was confident she could keep up to her teammate and even pass her before they were half way.

* * *

As it turned out, Blake underestimated Yang's weapons. They were nearing the five mile mark, and Blake was still behind, though only by a meter now.

_Keeping up? Or have you called it quits? _Yang asked through her thoughts. Both girls were panting for breath as they tried to pass each other, neither wanting to lose with the stakes they were playing for.

_I'd say you were getting tired, thinking like that. _Blake responded as she closed another few inches. Yang ripped through a bush, making a hole large enough for Blake to follow untouched.

_I'm really getting tired of these bushes! Who put's bushes in the middle of a forest? Honestly! _Yang complained for the twentieth time in as many minutes.

_I'm pretty sure that's how nature works. _Blake responded again. She was starting to feel like a broken record at this point.

_Then nature's a bitch! _Yang shot back as she punched through another bush. On the other side, a startled beowulf turned, barring its teeth. Both Yang and Blake ignored it as they rushed by. The beowulf chased them for a few seconds, then decided to leave them alone to resume its scavenging.

_That's twelve in the last five minutes. _Blake informed Yang. _There sure are a lot here today._

_Yeah, I noticed that too. I wonder why there are so many wandering around. Even Forever Fall wasn't this busy when we went there. _Yang responded, once again showing how well she actually paid attention even though it didn't look like it.

_Just pay attention to where we're going. We don't need to get stuck in a fight with an Ursa Major or a Nevermore. _Blake said, remembering their unlucky encounter in the initiation.

Yang came to a sudden stop, throwing her arm out to catch Blake. "Uhh, I think we are going to have a bit of trouble."

Blake looked straight ahead to see a clearing with four Deathstalkers all sitting as if they had nothing better to do, which Blake guessed they didn't. "We'll have to go around." Blake said, as Yang turned to look back the way they'd come.

"Yeah… don't think that'll work."

Blake turned to see shadows in the trees slowly emerge. There must have been at least fifty beowulfs or more all inching closer to where they stood. _If we fight, those Deathstalkers are going to come kill us._

Yang had a sudden thought that Blake could see plain as day even if she didn't share thoughts with the girl. "You're not going to like this." Yang said quietly as the beowulfs advanced.

_What else is new? _Blake thought sourly as Yang took her by the arm and started edging out into the Deathstalker filled clearing, the beowulfs growling and advancing steadily.

* * *

A loud grunt caught Ruby's attention as she and Weiss raced through the trees. Weiss threw up a glyph before Ruby could respond to the charging boarbatusk. Ruby fired a round at the creature as it bounced harmlessly off the wall of energy. It immediately started smoking, the usual indication the monster had perished.

"Why are there so many of these things here today?" Ruby asked as she slapped a new magazine into her weapon.

"I don't know, but I have a bad feeling about that… I hope the others are okay." Weiss commented, thinking mainly of her teammates, but also of team JNPR.

"I'm sure they're fine." Ruby replied as she continued to lead Weiss down the river. Slowly, the plants were changing and getting smaller, meaning they should be at the right area within the hour.

Weiss's stomach let out a loud growl, making Ruby slow down as she started to giggle. Weiss gave her a playful smack on the arm which Ruby responded to with a smack to Weiss's butt. Weiss let out a surprised yelp, fixing Ruby with an angry glare.

"Sorry, too much?" Ruby asked although Weiss's glare had told her everything she needed to know.

"Careful I don't hide your cookie stash!" Weiss taunted in response. Ruby shut up quickly after that as they continued to walk down the river bank.

After half an hour, they came across a box on a pedestal. Weiss examined it and then touched it on a small square located directly at the top of the box. Loud grinding clunks echoed out of the box as if millions of old gears that had long since seized from lack of oil were starting to spin slowly. In response, a chorus of loud caws echoed down through the canopy and a message appeared on Ruby's scroll.

Ruby opened the message just as the box went silent and the lid opened with a hiss. "Weiss?"

"What is it?" She asked as she carefully retrieved a strange looking item from the box and placed it in a pouch on her hip. It looked like was four cones stuck together in the middle, and made of some sort of jade.

"Ozpin is calling us back." Ruby said with a slight tremor in her voice.

"What's wrong?" Weiss asked, catching the tremor.

"There's not just a lot more Grimm in here than normal," Ruby started, but stopped as she reread the small writing of the message. "There's a large army of level four Grimm coming somewhere deeper in the forest"

"What do you mean… level four?" Weiss asked, hesitantly. "There's only three levels on the danger system."

"I don't know what it means, but I think we should get out before whatever it is finds us." Ruby said, looking out into the gloom of the forest "And I hope everyone will be okay."

Weiss pulled out her scroll and sent a message to both Blake and Yang telling them to get out of the forest regardless of if they got to the objective or not. "I sent them a message, now lets get ourselves out of here."

"Yeah, lets…" Ruby was looking intently off into the darkness of the trees away from Beacon.

"What is it?" Weiss asked, a funny feeling making her spine tingle as she watched the scythe wielder.

"This feels like…" Ruby stopped. Weiss couldn't tell if her voice had failed her or if she was finding the right way to say the next part. "Like it felt ten years ago…"

* * *

"Last one there loses!" Yang yelled as she jumped over a Deathstalker, narrowly missing its stinger as it launched forward.

Blake threw her weapon and embedded it into the stinger just before it was pulled back, effectively slinging Blake into the lead. Behind them, the army of Beowolves and Deathstalkers were giving chase, a giant shifting black and white mass that looked more like a tidal wave than actual Grimm.

_I see it!_ Blake exclaimed in her head as she sprinted towards the small box on a pedestal not fifty feet in front of them. Blake got there five seconds ahead of Yang and pressed her finger to the scanner she identified in the picture. The box slowly started to grind its gears just as Yang barreled past, a bang echoing from her fist as she smashed the top corner to pieces with a punch that also shattered her knuckles. Blake felt the hit to her aura slightly as Yang healed herself.

_Pick it up and come on!_ Yang yelled in her head as she kept running, the Grimm now close enough to pose a serious threat.

Blake scooped up the spilled contents of the crate which was ironically just another box that looked like it had several more increasingly smaller boxes inside it. She tossed the item to Yang who caught it without a glance back and placed it in a pouch on her waist.

The two girls ran for their lives as they approached the edge of the forest

Ahead, a group of thirty or so students were milling back toward Beacon from across a field when they all sensed the rumbling of the ground as the massive army of Grimm came crashing out of the trees a blur of black and yellow racing the creatures to Beacon.

The students all bolted, following Yang as she turned to go to the starting point of the tournament. As expected, Ozpin was standing at the exact same place they'd left him, talking to Goodwitch as the students rounded the corner of the field.

Behind the two educators, small figures were emerging into the field, a short girl clad in red and a slightly taller one that was white as snow stopped in their tracks as the students around them took off for the school doors.

* * *

Weiss reached out and somehow managed to grab onto Ruby's cape just as she started to sprint towards the mob of Grimm with her semblance. Ruby spun back coughing as Weiss had nearly choked her by accident as Weiss dug in a pouch beside the one she'd put the relic in. "Use these, aim at groups and keep your distance."

Ruby nodded, remembering the amazingly potent dust that Weiss had used to blow a hole in the cement wall of the criminal compound. She quickly loaded an empty magazine with the special rounds and slapped it in, replacing the other on her hip for a quick reload. "Gimme a boost?"

"Of course!" Weiss answered the request as she placed one glyph on the ground that launched her partner into the air and another in the air as Ruby aimed her sniper above the fleeing students and at the shifting black mass.

Within a second, five rounds were fired off making the whole line of black falter with massive holes in the group as Beowolves and Deathstalkers were blown to bits from the force of the explosive rounds. The group shifted and the Beowolves seemed to hide behind their thicker skinned brethren as they continued to charge the students.

Ozpin stood sipping his coffee as he watched the red and white team blast away three quarters of the attacking force before they had even made it a hundred feet into the field.

Flashes of red started to flare out as Yang started to attack the remaining Grimm from the flank. The giant scorpions fell to the sheer ferocity of the attack as Beowolves seemed to disappear in the distance.

Ruby fell to the ground and Weiss caught her before she hit. "I need to get closer." Weiss stated, looking at Ruby for a solution.

"I am going to regret this later…" Ruby mumbled, seemingly to herself as she scooped up Weiss and ran full tilt with her semblance leaving a cloud of rose petals behind her.

They arrived to find Blake slicing a Beowulf twelve ways from Sunday as she swung her weapon around on her ribbon. Yang was ripping a claw off a Deathstalker as it tried in vain to free itself from the girl, a small ball of yellow visible in its claw.

Weiss noticed Ren and Nora dealing with a Deathstalker that was heading for the front doors. It fell with a crash as Nora cracked its exoskeleton with a brutal smash of her hammer. Ren was focusing his fire on the poisonous stinger as it swung feebly from the tail, more than ready to fall at the slightest abnormal movement from the creature.

Past Nora and Ren was Pyrrha holding off three beowulfs as Jaune carried a rather bloody looking kid toward the front doors. Over the forest, a V shape was forming that could be no less than thirty nevermores. Luckily they were heading away from the school.

"I got the Deathstalkers, keep the Beowolves off me!" Weiss yelled as Ruby vanished in a cloud of petals. Weiss sprinkled speed dust on her legs as she ran forward, using her glyphs to ensure stability on the uneven grass. The dust kicked in and Weiss felt the wind hit her face almost as if Ruby was carrying her again. She angled the glyphs as she slid across them to put her upside down right above the closest Deathstalker.

Just as the creature noticed her and tried to stab her with its stinger, Weiss loaded the only explosive chamber in her weapon's cylinder and launched herself straight down at the creature's head. The stinger missed by millimeters and Weiss planted her weapon firmly in one of the creatures larger eyes, a muffled explosion sounding as its stinger and eyes exploded into black smoke.

The husk of the dead creature collapsed as Weiss ejected the magazine and placed the special, explosive-only cylinder in the empty slot. She turned to see Ren slice the stinger off their Deathstalker as Nora pounded the stinger deep into the cracked body of the giant Grimm just like during initiation.

Weiss moved onto the next Deathstalker as Blake continued to slice Beowolves and Yang succeeded in ripping the Deathstalker's arm off and beating the creature with it before shoving her arm elbow deep into the armor-less hole and firing round after round at the creatures organs.

Ruby was a blur of flower petals as she danced around one Beowulf at a time, slicing each appendage off its body as if she was having fun doing so before decapitating the amputated creatures. Jaune turned back to the battle as Pyrrha speared her last Beowulf in the head.

Team JNPR assembled together at the edge of the remaining creatures as they watched RWBY fight. Weiss was using the same tactic to take down Deathstalker after Deathstalker, leaving large hollow looking bodies smoking behind her as Ruby and Blake danced around the Beowolves, that seemed to be unable to decide who to attack. Yang was moving on in her rage induced rampage, punching any grim that came within reach. Ursae and Boarbatusks fell with single hits and even Deathstalkers retreated as she smashed their claws to pieces with her massive attacks.

There weren't that many Grimm left, so JNPR decided to just sit out and watch RWBY finish them off. Blake was the first one done as she threw her weapon straight through the neck of her targeted Ursa. It collapsed and she sheathed her weapon as she looked around at her teammates. Yang was the second one finished as she jumped to punch a Deathstalkers stinger as it flew towards her. The force of the punch moved the stinger on an impact course with the Deathstalkers head that resulted in the creature ripping itself in half. Ruby was third as she finished the last Beowulf with a blur of her scythe, making the creature disappear in an explosion of black smoke.

Weiss was battling the last Grimm by jumping around it on her glyphs as she blocked its attacks and tried to position herself for the killing blow. The creature bore the marks of being hit with Ruby's explosive rounds and seemed like it knew how Weiss was trying to kill it.

Weiss launched straight forward and the beast moved to counter the attack. Weiss reacted with a split second to spare and used her glyphs to jump first up then down, directly on the other side of the creatures claws. She embedded her weapon in the only eye that the scarred creature had and heard the satisfying thump as the creature exploded on the inside.

Weiss fell to the ground panting with the effort required for using her glyphs so much in such a short time. Ruby was suddenly there, wrapping her arms around her and pulling her up into her arms like she was some groom carrying his bride over the threshold. Weiss felt the world swim around her as she closed her eyes from exhaustion, breathing a sigh of relief as she caught a glimpse of black and yellow following behind Ruby.

* * *

"Has there been any news from the doctor?" Ren asked Blake as the two walked back to the hospital wing, each carrying a large bag of food for the rest of their teams. It was the third time he'd asked in just as many days.

"None, I'm afraid." Blake responded. She felt the tug of Yang's thoughts as she felt Blake's worry. _There's nothing wrong, I'll be back in a few minutes._ She thought back to Yang. Blake hated to admit it, but she really didn't know if she wanted the link between them broken. On one hand, it was nice to be able to communicate without bothering to push the tiny buttons on her outdated cell phone, but at the same time she hadn't had a moment of peace for what felt like centuries, though it was only a couple of weeks.

Ren nodded pensively and gave a short grunt of acknowledgment. He really didn't talk much, Blake observed. In her head she wondered what magic Nora had used to make him open up, but had to laugh at herself because she realized she wasn't much better.

The hallway they were walking down was lined on one side with windows that looked out over the forest The sun was still high in the sky, but Ren was staring out the passing windows obviously in deep thought. It wasn't until he stopped by the last window that Blake felt it was time to break the silence between them.

"Is something bothering you?" Blake asked quietly, keeping her distance from him as he continued to stare at the forest He didn't move a muscle or answer for a full minute, and in that time, the sun poked its face ever so slightly farther towards the horizon and made the light fall ever so slightly farther on the floor at her feet.

"Have you ever wanted something so bad, and worked so hard for it, that when you finally got it you were too scared to throw it all away by a single simple mistake?" Ren spoke the words slowly, stopping at the end of each section. He stepped closer to the window and continued. "Like how Jaune got here and how he's been working hard to get on par with the rest of us. But if he does something stupid that gets him expelled, it would have all been for nothing?"

"Is this about your team leader?" Blake asked, her intuition kicking in to tell her there was a deeper meaning to Ren's sudden rambling.

"Never mind, it was just a bad example." He said dismissively.

"Then give me a better one." Blake prompted. She wanted to know what was troubling her friend, and at the same time was curious as to what Nora saw in him other than that he was the complete opposite personality-wise from her.

Ren seemed to think for a minute before he gave his next example. "Someone who grows flowers." He paused as if figuring out how to phrase his example. "They work hard in the spring to turn the soil and they care for the seeds they plant every day. They pick out the weeds, they water, sometimes they cover their plants with blankets when the nights get cold. They invest countless hours into their garden, and when the plants bloom, they are rewarded by the beauty of the weak little plants that bring them joy. But even the, bugs are constantly moving and eating at the plants and the gardener cant go on a vacation even if they wanted to, lest the wrong bugs show up in his absence and make all his work for nothing in the end."

Blake processed what Ren had said along with the fact that it was the most he'd ever spoken in her presence. She had a feeling that Ren was talking from experience as he looked out over the thousands of trees that made the forest stretch to the horizon and beyond.

"I think…" Blake said carefully. "That the gardener can only do what he is capable of, and has to trust the plants to be able to survive without his care for a short period of time. But at the same time, the gardener also has to realize that he can count on neighbors to look after the plants. Even though they wont do as good a job as the gardener, they could keep the plants alive long enough for the gardener to return to care for them properly." Blake thought of her only home before she'd been orphaned, a pang of sadness passed though her and she felt rather than heard Yang trying to comfort her.

"You might be right…" Ren let out a shaky breath and turned away from the window. "Can you take this back? I need to find Professor Goodwitch."

"Of course." Blake answered in confusion as she took the heavy bag from him. She watched him leave back the way they'd come and just as she was about to turn away, he stopped and turned back.

"Tell Nora not to worry, I'll be back soon." And with that he left, leaving Blake even more confused.

* * *

"Something's wrong, guys…" Yang said to the group as a whole as she rubbed her forehead. She'd seemed to develop the habit over the past few days as if the bond she'd shared was starting to wear on her. Ruby noted that since the bond wasn't technically a complete one, there was bound to be a few side effects. All the more reason to break it ASAP.

Blake entered seconds later. A frown creasing her forehead as she dropped the bags onto a nearby table that was relatively empty save a few papers from Yang's homework that she'd been given an extension on.

"What's up guys?" Nora asked, spinning in the only rotating chair in the room. "Hey, where'd Ren go?"

"He said he'd be back soon." Blake said. "I brought the food." She dug into the bags taking out several hamburgers and passing them around to everyone. Nora and Pyrrha each took a glance at the burger in their hands before switching them. Apparently, Ren had gone through the trouble to take specific orders. Blake's eyes caught Ruby's as she pulled the pickles out of her burger. Her face went pink as she held out the pickles, already knowing what Blake was thinking.

After adding the pickles to her burger Blake sat down next to Yang and whispered behind her burger while pretending to chew. "How's the headache today?"

Yang swallowed and shrugged at the same time as she took another bite, her fist gripping the wrapper a little too hard, making the ketchup bulge out of the bite mark.

"That bad, huh?" Blake mused as she tried her best to keep her thoughts to herself. It was surprisingly difficult especially when she was trying. If she wasn't careful, she'd let her idle thoughts drift through the link that was now causing Yang so much pain.

"Ain't nothing." Yang said with an air of finality, causing Pyrrha to look over at the two. Her emerald eyes piercing them like x-rays as they sat eating. After a moment, she shook her head almost imperceptibly and turned back to Jaune who was going over his paper that was due later that day.

Blake noticed how Ruby ate, sitting in a chair pressed right up to Weiss's bed, with her knees pulled to her chin and her feet resting on the very front of the seat. It was an interesting position, but it seemed to serve the purpose of keeping her awake as she hadn't moved save to visit the restroom for three days.

Ruby had carried Weiss straight to the infirmary and placed her on an empty bed. Once the doctors had checked them both for injury, they'd told Ruby that Weiss should stay until she was able to leave on her own. Apparently, they hadn't realized that they'd just guaranteed themselves an extremely stubborn visitor who refused to abide by the visiting hours.

Weiss murmured in her sleep and Ruby's hand shot out and started running her fingers through the girls long white hair, slowing ever so slightly at her ear before moving down her neck and then back to the top of her head. Weiss grew quiet again as Ruby continued to stroke her hair like a mother tending to a child. Blake wondered who Ruby had learned that from, but had a pretty good idea when Yang ran her fingers down Blake's head to get her attention.

Yang leaned her mouth close enough to Blake's ear that Blake felt the sudden urge to squirm away. Yang let out a short breath before moving away. Blake could barely make out the single word Yang had breathed, _Tonight._

Blake balled up the empty hamburger wrapper in her hand and went over to Ruby who handed over her garbage. "Try to sleep a little bit, okay?" Blake said on impulse as she looked at the dark bags under her leader's eyes. Ruby nodded and buried her mouth and nose into her knees, her eyes remaining on Weiss as she continued to stroke the white hair.

Blake left the room with team JNPR as they headed to their next class.

"So where'd Ren go?" Nora asked Blake as they walked. "Did he tell you? Or did he just walk away? He does that sometimes. I don't know why, though."

"He said something about Ms. Goodwitch. He said he'd be back soon and not to worry." Blake relayed the whole message that Ren'd given her. A dark cloud seemed to wash over Nora's features before disappearing as quickly as it'd come.

"Guys? I think I forgot some stuff back at the room. Go on without me, kay? I'll be there in a jiff!" Nora said, already turning and running down the hall.

"Uh, isn't our room in the other direction?" Jaune asked Pyrrha as they continued to walk in front of Blake.

"Yes. Yes it is." Blake answered as she watched Nora turn a corner.

* * *

**End Note:**

**Thanks for reading!**

**I've decided to keep releases on Wednesday as there really is no better time for me to post.**

**Also, please let me know what you thought about this chapter or any other chapter I have or will post, as I am back in NaNoPrep mode for NaNoWriMo this November. My goal this November is to reach the half way point in Volume 3 by the end of the challenge period.**

**Also in the works for a release prior to Volume 2 is a parallel arc that follows Ren from where he leaves this chapter until when he comes back (no spoilers).**

**And come back next week for the finale of this arc!**


	14. Chapter 13: Arc 5: Advanced Uses of Aura

**Author's Note:**

**So, my midterms are finished, and here I give to ye the last chapter in this arc.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

Blake had trouble concentrating in class that afternoon as she continually made an effort to block any thoughts that might stray to Yang, hoping that the lack of mental communication between them was helping her teammate's headaches. Blake found out after class that Weiss had woken up and been discharged with the only condition being she returns after a few days to run tests. Yang briefly explained that Weiss had simply used too much of her aura, causing her extreme fatigue.

As a celebration of her release, Weiss had taken Ruby out on a date that evening which left Yang and Blake alone in their dorm.

_It's all for the best._ Yang thought, making Blake look up over her ever-present book.

"What's all for the best?" She asked curiously as Yang paced up and down the room, moving their stuff around and piling books onto the desk.

"Well, the kids are away tonight and that gives me time to talk to you." Yang answered cryptically as she piled the books even higher as she cleared the floor more than it'd been since they'd gotten the massive amount of books.

"We don't have to wait for them to leave you know." Blake said, as she resumed reading.

"I didn't want to be interrupted… and I'll have to take your book too." Yang said as she yanked it out of Blake's hands and slipped a bookmark in before adding it to the pile on the desk.

"Okay…" Blake dragged out the word as she fumbled, not knowing what to do with her hands now that they weren't holding anything. "What now?"

"No rush, Blakey. Ride the wave, ya know?" Yang said as she bounced down beside Blake on the bed. Yang reached out and took Blake's hand to stop their fidgeting. "I think you need to calm down a little bit. You've been so twitchy lately. Is something bothering you?"

"Nothing, why?" Blake asked confused as to how twitchy turned into bothered in her teammate's mind.

"Just a hunch." Yang responded. "Anyway, I wanted to know if you wanted to come to Moonshot with me? It's a bar I've been meaning to visit for a while now."

Blake felt every muscle in her body go rock hard at the name of the bar. There was absolutely no way she was ever going back there, let alone allowing Yang to set foot within a mile of that place ever again. And how Yang hadn't remembered she'd already visited the place once, scared Blake even more. "No."

"Awww come on, Blakey. I wanna party a bit. It's been so boring around here after I got out of the joint-"

"It was the hospital Yang!" _And how do you expect me to explain why I can't let you go near that place ever again?! _Blake thought to herself, cursing her inability to find the right words.

"Whoa, calm down there. I just wanna have some fun, so lets go to the bar, okay? We'll get some fun juice and dance till our legs don't work anymore, then we can have a cat nap!" Yang planned, already thinking of the drink she'd order for herself when her head exploded in pain as Blake's thoughts flooded into her as Blake lost control over the barrier she'd worked hard to keep up.

Pain. That was the main thing Yang felt, and it wasn't just her head threatening to burst from the flawed link they shared. It was Blake's pain. And her fear. And sorrow, regret, longing, and a thousand variations of those and other emotions as they mixed together, mutating into a deadly ball of torture. Yang's eyes were watering from the pain of the connection that was staying solid and refused to drop no matter how hard she tried to close it off. She looked over at Blake who had tears flowing down her face, her eyes wide and terrified as they slowly got redder from the tears spilling forth from her silent crying.

The emotions stopped as Blake got her mind back under her control as Yang finally understood the lone message that was underneath them. "That's where we went that night, isn't it?"

Blake was wiping her eyes on a nightshirt she'd pulled from beneath the sheets. She nodded silently as she forced the connection to stay closed.

"It's okay. You don't have to keep it closed." Yang said quietly as she wrapped her arms around her teammate's neck. Slowly, she pulled the shirt away from Blake's face and kissed her forehead while whispering to her. "Shhh… we won't ever go there again. I promise."

Yang kissed Blake's forehead softly, making Blake close her eyes. Yang felt some small piece of her fall away as she enjoyed the warmth of her teammate so close and yet a lot closer than she was normally comfortable with. She kissed each of Blake's eyes, making them pop open in turn before moving so their foreheads touched and they were looking directly into each other's eyes.

"There's something different about you." Yang stated in a ponderous voice.

"I am a faunus, you know." Blake said, feeling a little awkward about Yang's choice of words.

"Yeah, but that's not what I meant." Yang said patiently. "You're not like any of the others. You're special."

"Um, thanks?" Blake said, her voice rising like a question. "You're special too."

Yang let out a soft laugh and gently kissed Blake, their eyes maintaining contact throughout. "I mean you're special to me."

Blake didn't have anything to respond with, so she just kissed the beautiful blonde girl in front of her, her eyes closing to enjoy the sensation of Yang's lips beneath her own, the prodding of her tongue against Yang's lips as she asked for entrance, and finally Yang's tongue as they intertwined, their saliva mixing, making the kiss feel very wet compared to the last time when both their mouths had been dried out from sleep.

Blake felt her head grow fuzzy and she felt her hands move to tangle in Yang's hair. Blake was amazed when Yang didn't even react and instead continued the kiss as if it was the oxygen she needed to breathe. Eventually, both girls needed air and they broke apart, panting. A thin string of saliva joined them that stretched and broke as they opened their eyes to look at each other. Yang's eyes were slightly clouded as if there was a storm raging behind them, and Blake knew she was feeling the same.

A flash of a thought ran through Blake's mind as she remembered the link. She leaned forward, Yang met her half way and they began kissing again. This time, Blake tried to draw on her aura to either break or complete the link, at this point she didn't exactly know which she wanted and which she was trying for. She felt the familiar power course through her limbs as Yang broke out of the kiss.

"Oh…" Was all she managed to utter before she closed her eyes and fell asleep in Blake's arms.

_Well, I'll have to wait till morning to find out what happened, I guess._ Blake thought to herself as she rested Yang's head on the pillow then lay down beside her, pressing a kiss to her lips before pulling up the blanket and curling up beside her. What she didn't see as she closed her eyes was the faint smile that Yang wore as they slept side by side.

* * *

A loud crash echoed in the room bright and early the next morning followed closely by the screams of Weiss and Ruby.

"Shut up! I'm sleeping!" Yang yelled as she burrowed her face deeper into her soft… warm… _what is this? _She asked herself. Just then, an arm wrapped around her and pulled her even closer to the softness. The hand stroked her hair slowly and Yang felt a strange sensation of contentment and stopped moving.

_Wait, why is there a hand touching my hair? More importantly, who's hand is it? _Yang suddenly sprang out of the bed and landed on the floor, smacking her head against it with a loud crack. She opened her eyes, just to see the world swimming around her in a blur of color as she turned around to get her bearings.

Yang's vision returned to see Blake sitting up and yawning while she stretched her arms. _Honestly, you act so catlike sometimes!_ Yang thought to Blake, but didn't receive a response. _Huh, that's odd…_

"I told you! Didn't I tell you?" Weiss was yelling at Ruby from the other side of the room. "What if I was under there? What if you were? Don't you see that we could've died?"

"I think that's a bit of an exaggeration…" Ruby responded as she looked over the mess of her collapsed bunk. "It probably wouldn't have killed us… only hurt a lot."

Weiss let out an exasperated huff. "Well, what now then? Are you going to put it back? Or can I just buy a normal bunk bed that was made specifically as a bunk bed?"

"I already told you, I don't want you're money!" Ruby yelled back. "I can probably fix this anyway…"

"I think Weiss is right." Blake piped in. "That bed is completely destroyed."

Yang was inspecting her bed with a confused look on her face as to why it was completely cold as if she hadn't slept in it. She rubbed her arm over the mattress as she tried to remember the previous night.

"What's wrong, Yang?" Ruby piped in, leaving her argument in concern for her sister's quietness.

"I'm not sure…" Yang admitted as she looked around the room at the still locked door and her three teammates. It was then that she took in the mass of destruction on her sister's side of the room.

Ruby's bunk hung from one of the four ropes that were supposed to support it and was lying through the middle of Weiss's bed that had cracked in half straight down the middle from the impact. Splinters of wood scattered more than a foot away from the epicenter of the destruction. "Are you okay?"

Ruby blushed and turned away. "Yeah… we were already out of bed." She ran into the washroom without another word.

"Wait, we?" Yang asked the room as a whole, looking to Weiss then Blake and back again, fixing Weiss with a look of suspicion.

"Hey, if you and Blake are allowed to sleep together, then I see no problem with Ruby and I doing the same!" She huffed in her imperious voice that she had been slowly losing since she'd become part of team RWBY. "Anyways, tell Ruby I went to the cafeteria."

Yang watched in silence, processing what Weiss had said as she left the room. Blake crossed the room, picking up her book from the desk where Yang had left it the previous night. Turning back to her bed, she started to open the book and then remembered what she'd tried the previous night. She closed the book and stopped in front of Yang.

She thought one thought with all her might. A command for Yang to kiss her. She tried her hardest to send it over the link like she'd done the previous day. She continued to keep eye contact with Yang for a solid minute before Yang started shifting under her gaze, breaking the eye contact and looking down and to the left.

"Um… why are you looking at me like that?" Yang asked shyly as she glanced back up at Blake.

Blake smiled as she realized she'd somehow broken their link, at least enough to be disjoint in their thoughts. "How do you feel about an early morning practice?"

It was half an hour later that the two teammates stood across from each other in the gym's sparring area.

"I'm a bit tired, so go easy?" Yang asked with a yawn. The bags under her eyes indicated how tired she was.

"Don't worry." Blake said as she took her combat position.

A digital beeping sounded from Yang's scroll and the two leaped at each other. Yang starting out with a single heavy punch. Blake saw it coming, but was determined to test her theory. She moved directly into the path of the punch, allowing Yang's fist to smash into her left cheek.

Her head exploded in stars as she fell backward. She felt the wind knocked out of her as she landed hard, rolling awkwardly as her momentum dissipated. As she stopped and shook her head, Yang was already crouching at her side.

"Oh, my god! Are you okay?" Yang asked, worry etched into her eyes.

"… Yeah… I'm fine." Blake answered. In fact, she didn't feel fine. She felt like she'd been punched by a brick, although that had been her plan to begin with. Nothing felt broken, so she pulled out her scroll to check her aura level. "Yang, take a look at this…"

Yang took Blake's scroll and looked at the aura levels for her team. Ruby's and Weiss's levels were both glowing bright green at the top. Yang's eyes widened in surprise at the bottom half of the screen. The bottom, Yang's level, was a darker green than Ruby and Weiss, but it was Blake's readout that interested her. Blake's was flashing an orange that was almost red with a caution symbol turning on and off beside it. "Did I actually hit you that hard?"

"Yeah, but that's not what I mean." Blake said with another shake of her head before she jumped to her feet. She took the scroll back from Yang and pulled up a screen-shot she'd taken just before their match. "At the start, we both had the exact same aura levels." She pointed the readings out to Yang who nodded as she tried to figure out where Blake was going with this. "Anyway, when we fought in the tournament, our aura dropped at the exact same pace, no matter who got hit, because we shared our aura through the link the way we shared thoughts."

"Okay, so it doesn't work anymore?" Yang asked, hoping she wasn't missing anything.

"No. It's broken!" Blake exclaimed joyfully. "You couldn't hear my thoughts this morning and I couldn't hear yours! That means what I did last night actually fixed our problem!"

Yang noticed how excited Blake was about it, but couldn't help but feel hurt at the implication that she was happy to be rid of the bond between them. It must have showed on her face, because Blake suddenly stopped. Her smile vanished as if she had never been smiling to begin with.

"Yang, I don't need a mental connection to tell there's something bothering you." Blake said, crouching down to Yang's level where she still sat on her knees. "What is it?"

"It's nothing…" Yang responded sounding depressed, looking away and starting to stand up to leave.

"It's definitely not nothing!" Blake asserted, placing her hand firmly on her teammate's shoulder and forcing her to remain seated.

The two stared at each other in a silent battle of wills, until Yang gave up with a huff. "Fine! Fine! Just quit it with the eyes already! I feel like you just want to be rid of me, and that's fine! I'm not one to get emotional just cause I misunderstood how someone feels about me!"

"What are you-" Blake started, not knowing what Yang was talking about.

"Don't worry. I get it. You can go now. You don't have to pretend to like me anymore. I know I deserve this anyway because of how I tricked you into the bond to begin with!" Yang continued, her voice slowly rising in volume.

Blake watched as her teammate's face flushed red and her eyes glistened with unshed tears before she jumped up and walked away. "Yang, wait!"

"I'm going to the bags. I'll see ya later." Yang called back shortly before entering the next room.

Blake felt liquid warmth run down her cheek. She wiped the tear away and looked after Yang. _What did I say?_

* * *

Yang seemed to be in a bad mood because it was late at night when she finally returned to the dorm. She told Ruby she'd been in the gym practicing, and joked with Weiss about leaving hot water as she entered the shower she'd just left. Blake sat in the dark corner of her bed, looking over the top of her book, but Yang didn't even acknowledge she'd seen her.

Blake felt heat prick the corners of her eyes but she refused to cry. She must have been staring because suddenly, Weiss was beside her.

"You broke the aura bond, didn't you?" Weiss guessed, shaking her head.

"Y-yeah…"

"Well, then you just have to replace it with something else, right?" Weiss pointed out. "You should know how Yang might act tough but is really being ripped apart inside. She probably was happy to have something that made you two more than just teammates. Now that you've gotten rid of it though, she is probably feeling a bit rejected."

Blake was shaken at how observant the white haired woman beside her was, and thought about what she could give Yang to fix it. She had a hundred thoughts but only one really stood out, but that was taking things a bit too far…. _Or was it?_

"Anyway…" Weiss said slowly as she got off of Blake's bed. "Wanna go for a walk, Ruby?"

Ruby who was trying to avoid her bed that now served as the only bed for both her and Weiss, jumped as if she'd burned herself. "R-r-r-right! Let's g-go!" Her face was beyond the normal shade of red as she cast one last glance at her bed before racing out of the room in an explosion of rose petals.

"You're supposed to wait for me!" Weiss yelled, grabbing both her and Ruby's jackets before walking out the door. "And you have to stop doing that in the room! I'm getting tired of cleaning up the petals!"

The door slammed and Blake heard the water turn off in the washroom. Yang came out in her towel. After glancing around the room quickly, she went to put her nightclothes on. Blake came up behind her and cleared her throat to get some attention.

"What is it?" Yang snapped, clearly in a worse mood than Blake had realized.

"Um…" Blake couldn't find any words that she felt would fix the situation, so she placed her hand on Yang's cheek, turning her head so they were looking into each others eyes.

Blake had a feeling that Yang was about ready to punch her, so she did the only thing that she could think of. She closed her eyes and kissed the golden haired beauty, catching her off guard.

A loud slap echoed in the room as Blake's head snapped to the side. Yang's eyes were glowing a dark red and her hair seemed to be alive like yellow flame. Blake felt her repressed tears burst forth and tried to turn away from her teammate. Yang was quicker however, and caught her by the shoulder, forcing her to turn back.

Wiping tears from her eyes and desperately trying to get free of Yang's iron grip, Blake didn't notice the other hand of her captor reaching gently for her still stinging cheek.

Yang guided Blake's face up to look at her. "That was for making me believe you didn't care about me…." She whispered gently, her other hand leaving Blake's shoulder as she froze in place, captivated by the fiery blonde. "And this is for getting me to realize how stupid I was…."

Blake braced herself for another smack, but was pleasantly surprised by the soft lips that pressed at first gently, then firmly against her own. She felt her mouth open and was immediately invaded by Yang's tongue. She felt herself respond like a mirror as her eyes fluttered shut. She'd kissed Yang before, but it was absolutely nothing like this. She heard rather than felt herself moan as Yang's tempo changed. Blake felt the girl smile at the sound and started to push Blake back to her bed.

The couple collapsed like that, Yang sucking on Blake's tongue as her hands touched places Blake felt that even she hadn't touched. A fire was burning somewhere and Blake was gasping for air as Yang moved to nibble on her ear.

"Oh god! Don't stop!" Blake moaned as Yang bit down hard on the girls ear while running a hand through her hair. Blake's hands flew up and pushed Yang's head even closer to her ear as Yang's tongue licked around the outside and moved down the faunus's neck.

Blake was panting heavily as Yang kissed and licked and nibbled her neck in a way that felt like animal instinct. Blake was lying if she said she wasn't feeling completely lost in the amazing sensation Yang was giving her.

A loud bang announced the re-arrival of the rest of the team and Yang jumped away from Blake as if the latter had caught fire.

"Oh my god!" Ruby squealed, spinning just to run straight into Weiss who was directly behind her.

"For goodness sake! I didn't mean to go that far! I meant to apologize or something!" Weiss said, her face glowing red as she hung onto Ruby who had almost tackled her.

Blake was busy catching her breath, so Yang answered for them both. "I thought you two'd left."

"Yeah well, it's minus thirty outside! Not exactly prime walking weather!" Weiss shot back.

"Well that's your fault for not checking first." Blake piped up, still breathing as if she'd been jogging.

"Whatever, let's just go to bed." Ruby said, avoiding looking at the other half of her team, but stopped short as she noticed the single bed on her side of the room.

Yang started to chuckle at the look on her sister's face and Blake had to smile as Weiss walked up beside Ruby, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"It's not like we'll be doing anything with others in the room." Weiss said pointedly.

"R-right…" Ruby was back to stuttering.

"You can always share with Blake and Yang if you don't like me that much." Weiss teased, her joke lost to Ruby.

"No, I'll share with you…" Ruby said, grabbing her nightclothes and running to the washroom.

"Cool move, slick." Yang laughed before laying down on Blake's bed beside her. "Maybe I'll have to get rid of my bed too…"

"You wouldn't dare!" Blake answered, smacking Yang lightly on the arm before cuddling up beside her.

"You can't control what happens in the heat of the moment…" Yang replied slyly, her eyes unfocused as she looked up at the bottom of her bunk.

* * *

**End Note:**

**Hello again, thanks for reading!**

**My brain is a bit melted right now (Points if you can explain why a programmer would ever need to know strong induction when while(true) is good enough), but I'd like to announce that I will be posting every other week in November because I'll be busy cranking out as many words as possible to finish this story, and resume posting as normal in December. As I have (had? Don't know just now. I might have to rework something.) planned, the final chapter will release Christmas Eve (It's a Christmas chapter, so I thought it was appropriate.).**

**And now we go to the last arc: Arc 6: Das Weiße Weihnachten.**

**Hope to see you all back next Wednesday!**


	15. Chapter 14: Arc 6: Das Weiße Weihnachten

**Author's Note:**

**This is Chapter 14. As usual, stuff happens, and we begin the last plot arc.**

* * *

December came bright and early one morning in the form of a blizzard. The sky was completely black the whole day, forcing the students of Beacon to stay close to their desk lamps as they studied for their upcoming exams. Classes had been cancelled as there was a very real danger of getting lost in the snow and falling off the cliff that Beacon sat atop. Several teachers had posted podcasts of their lectures to the Beacon Scroll Network so that the students wouldn't miss the last few items that would appear on the exams.

Weiss was staring at her scroll, her eyes fluttering and head snapping back up every few minutes as she sat in her bed, attempting to listen to Professor Port's lecture on the recent increase of Grimm activity. _Yeah, yeah, I know all this. Hell, I fought off a horde not even a week ago!_ She thought as she tried desperately to feel more awake. The pitch black window beside her not helping in the slightest.

Across the room, quiet snoring was coming from the top bunk where Yang had fallen asleep for the eighth time in the past two hours. Her scroll dangled limply in her hand as she hung over the edge of the bunk. Blake was now leaning forward with her scroll's stylus and poking Yang to wake her up as she discarded her scroll in favor of the exponentially more exciting task of poking her roommate in the face.

Ruby sat at the desk, trying to write an essay. She let out the occasional mumbled word as she wrote and then cursed under her breath as she crossed out several paragraphs just to start writing again. She tossed the crossed out paper in the general direction of the waste bin, only to bounce out of the overflowing mesh basket and land on a continuously growing mountain. She let out a long sigh and leaned backward over the chair, rubbing her eyes as if she'd just woken from a very long nap. She noticed Weiss looking at her and smiled before returning to her work.

Weiss looked back down to her scroll and realized she'd just missed the last ten minutes of the lecture for the sixth time and let out a frustrated sigh. She jumped to her feet and stretched as Yang finally woke up and fell out of her bunk with a crash, causing Ruby to fall out of her chair and throw her pen in the general direction of the noise.

Blake watched it all play out and then burst into a fit of giggles that soon spread to the others in the room. Even Weiss felt herself start to laugh hysterically at something that she didn't even find terribly funny.

After a solid five minutes of giggles from all the girls Weiss finally calmed down enough to ask. "What are we laughing about again?"

"No clue." Ruby replied, gasping for breath.

"Me neither." Yang also piped up as she climbed into Blake's bed, laying her head on Blake's lap.

"I think we need a break." Blake said, wiping a stray tear from her eye and resting her head against the wall.

"I think that's a little bit of an understatement." Weiss replied as her scroll started beeping.

"Lets go party!" Yang yelled as Weiss opened her messages to find the single name that she didn't expect to ever see on her scroll.

"We can't it's blizzarding, remember?" Blake replied with a roll of her eyes.

Ruby was watching Weiss's grim look as she tapped her scroll. Ruby knew something must have happened to make her look so serious all of a sudden. As Weiss's eyes scanned the device, her mouth slowly dropped open in shock. Ruby couldn't wait any longer. She had to find out what was wrong. "Weiss, what's up?"

Weiss looked over at Ruby, her eyes glazed as the other two stopped their playful argument to listen. Weiss's mouth tried to form words, but her breath caught in her throat, as all her pent up anger and hatred battled for supremacy. Instead, she held out her scroll for Ruby.

"Let's see…" Ruby said as she turned it to read it aloud. "Weiss Schnee, it is my duty to inform you that as of January the first, you will… no longer be enrolled in Beacon Academy…. WHAT!?" Ruby yelled at the end, looking up at Weiss.

Weiss looked away and gave a circular motion with her finger to tell Ruby to keep going.

Ruby looked and found there was another page to the letter. "At that time, you will return to the primary Schnee residence designated White Castle in order to begin an apprenticeship for the position of CEO of Schnee Dust and Affiliates. Regards, Ilsa Schnee."

Ruby looked up at Weiss who didn't know whether she was more angry at the fact that her father thought that she'd just up and leave Beacon to become his apprentice in the company, or if she was more angry that he'd actually thought it a good idea for her twenty something year old step mother to be the one to tell her. Weiss couldn't hold it in any more and punched the nearest thing she could find, which happened to be her and Ruby's mattress.

Her fist flew like a meteor as she let loose all her rage in that single punch. Just as her fist made the barest of contact, two things happened so fast, only Ruby had been able to see with her semblance kicking in automatically.

The bed froze to solid ice, Weiss's glyph symbols etched everywhere. Then as her fist's momentum continued onward, the whole bed cracked and shattered into a puff of snow that was like a bed-shaped ball in front of the heiress for a split second before flying off in every direction. It caught in the ventilation currents and slowly settled into piles here and there around the room.

Weiss was staring at her fist, clenching and unclenching it as Yang sat up from Blake's lap and Blake finally put her book down and grabbed onto Yang's shoulder.

"Well… that's new…"

"No shit, Sherlock! What the hell was that?" Yang almost shouted, her grip on the bed making it creak in the silence.

Weiss just shook her head as she dropped her arm, but continued to look at the empty spot where she'd been sitting just moments ago.

"Weiss?" Ruby asked tentatively, her voice almost a whisper.

"It's fine, Ruby." Weiss exhaled shakily. "I just lost it for a second there. I'm fine now."

Ruby nodded quietly as she cautiously approached Weiss. When she placed her hand on Weiss's back and started rubbing gentle circles as her arms wrapped around the white haired girl, Weiss felt like her heart started to pound again. At first, it was fast as if coming down from a thrum where each beat was connected to the next, then it slowed considerably until Weiss felt a great tiredness sweep over her as her heart-rate dropped still further.

Ruby was whispering something in her ear, but Weiss couldn't understand. She felt herself slip off into sleep as another pair of hands grabbed her under her arms.

Weiss awoke to the smell of fresh mint coffee as it wafted from a tray beside the bed she lay on. The room was almost dark and there was a slight dripping noise coming from somewhere as the shadows danced in the single flame burning in the candle set atop the desk.

Something incredibly warm was nestling up to her, but she found she didn't have the energy to move much less say anything. She felt velvety soft contact on her cheek for a moment, and breathed out slowly as she relaxed. She had the feeling that she was at home, as if every part of the place was exactly where she'd belonged her whole life.

Ruby moved her lips from Weiss's cheek and breathed into her ear. "Sweet dreams, my princess. I love you."

Weiss smiled at Ruby's nickname and she turned her head to kiss her beautiful girlfriend. Ruby jumped at the sudden movement and let out a small squeal as she bashed her head into the wall beside the bed.

_Wait, where did we get a bed from? Didn't I break it?_ Weiss did a quick survey, but she came up with the same conclusion. She was definitely in a bed.

"You're awake?!" Ruby squealed in surprise after she'd finished shaking off the bump.

"I just woke up?" Weiss asked as if she didn't know herself.

"When?" Ruby asked, her face glowing almost as red as the flame on the candle as it flickered its abysmal light around the room.

"Um… just before you kissed me?" Weiss replied. She didn't exactly know when her dream had turned to reality.

"Oh…" Ruby said. Her hands started wringing themselves in her lap. After a pause her head snapped back up. "I brought you mint decaf in case you wanted something to drink. It's a bit cold since that bed exploding into snow thing earlier."

"Speaking of which, why am I lying on a bed if I blew it up?" Weiss asked as her head finally snapped back into awake mode.

"It's Yang's. She didn't want it anymore, so she helped me set it up." Ruby said, pointing over to the other side of the room where there was now only one bed.

"What did Blake say about that?" Weiss had a feeling things wouldn't be running as completely smooth as Ruby seemed to believe they were.

"She was fine with it." Ruby answered. "So since Yang doesn't have a bed anymore, she's taken extra blankets and set herself up a cot beside Blake." Ruby continued as if this was completely normal.

"Whatever." Weiss shook her head as she took a sip of her coffee. Yang should've known better than to expect Blake to let her sleep with her on a regular basis. "Oh yeah, what was it you were whispering to me."

"Um… uh… that was just… I said goodnight." Ruby said, stuttering and shifting so she wouldn't have to look at Weiss.

"Oh…" Weiss responded. She knew exactly what Ruby had said, but she was hoping she'd repeat it. "Thanks for the coffee, though. I'll finish it tomorrow." She set the cup aside and lay back down, patting the bed beside her for Ruby to join.

Ruby lay down and put her back to Weiss who reined her in with her strong arms. When Ruby didn't relax, Weiss whispered into her ear. "I feel like I'm freezing my fingers off. Why are you always so amazingly warm?"

Ruby gave a grunt that could've meant anything, but Weiss felt the muscles in her back relax as Weiss held her close, breathing in the sweet scent of her hair mixed with the previous day. She'd obviously forgone her shower till the next morning. Weiss felt her smile grow as she realized she felt intoxicated by the scythe wielder's natural scent.

After about five minutes, Ruby's breathing slowed and Weiss started to drift off. "I'm not leaving. Not ever." She whispered, more as a message that she knew would never find her father than for Ruby's benefit. "I have a new family now."

A few more moments passed and Weiss was at the very edge of falling asleep. She felt the sudden urge to respond to Ruby's earlier whisper, but it only came out in her thoughts. _I love you too, Ruby…_

* * *

Yang was the first one up the next day, in complete contrast to normal and most likely caused by the lack of pocket coils under her back. She woke everyone up in the usual fashion as everyone grumbled at why they were up at six in the morning. She ran out of the room and down the hall toward the doors that led to the rest of the school when she remembered it had been blizzarding and there was probably no way to get to the other part of the school.

Nevertheless, she opened the door when she got to it, just to slam it shut again. The blizzard was still raging and the snow had already built up to the bottom of her breasts. She returned to the room in a bad mood as she was finally feeling the trapped feeling she often felt when she couldn't go outside.

"So how high was the snow?" Ruby asked as she pulled on fresh clothes after her shower. Weiss was pointedly looking anywhere but at Ruby as she still felt extremely awkward about that part of her relationship.

Yang seemed to squeeze her breasts before tackling Blake, who was trying to make her bed with one hand and hold a book with the other, onto her half made bed.

"Would you quit it already?" Blake said loudly as Yang nipped playfully at one of Blake's cat ears as if she was an animal herself.

"So how much snow was there?" Ruby asked again. She was confused as to why Yang hadn't answered her directly the first time because Yang always answered when she was spoken to.

"Boob." Yang said, before switching to Blake's other ear.

A loud purr came tumbling out of Blake's mouth as she slammed her hand over it to stifle any further embarrassing noises, and slapped Yang with her book, trying to get her to let go.

"What?" Weiss asked, now able to look around as Ruby had finished dressing.

"Boob height." Yang said. "But for you I'd say more nipple height." Yang let out a frustrated groan as Blake finally succeeded in pushing her off. "I just wanna go outside! I'm so bored!"

"So do I but we can't right now." Ruby said, trying to figure out something to get her sister to stop her grumbling and terrorizing the rest of the them. "How about we figure out what we're gonna do today. Any ideas?"

"I'm going to finish this book." Blake said, waving her book in the air. "I'll be in the dorm library."

"I wanted to get some practice in." Weiss said, looking at her teammates for any volunteers.

Yang and Ruby exchanged a nervous glance. Yang shrugged, as she headed to the door. "Just don't turn her to snow or I'll have to hurt you. I'll go see what Pyrrha's up to."

Weiss remained quiet until her two roommate's had left. Now it was just her and Ruby.

"So, what'd you want to practice?" Ruby asked, sitting down beside Weiss on the bed.

"I actually needed to talk to you about what happened yesterday…" Weiss said as she looked away in embarrassment.

"I'd like that, Weiss." Ruby said, her team-leader voice was comforting and Weiss knew she wasn't scared of her like the others had been the previous day.

"Well, I don't understand it completely, but it seems that whenever I am angry… extremely angry… my semblance tends to do weird things…." Weiss said, not knowing what else she could call turning something that wasn't even wet to ice and then shattering it into snow with her bare fist.

"I thought it would be something like that." Ruby said, placing a hand on Weiss's back.

They stayed silent for a while, as they each zoned out to their separate thoughts. After a few minutes, Weiss broke the silence. "I'm going to tell my parents I refuse."

Ruby snapped back from her own world and nodded. "You can't let them make those decisions for you." Ruby remembered her own childhood before she met Yang and Qrow. She shook the faded memories from her mind and continued. "And I'd be really happy if you stayed."

Weiss hugged Ruby, her eyes shut and she let out a breath she was holding as she focused her mind on the monumentous task ahead of her. "Will you help me? Will you come to my house for Christmas?"

Ruby hesitated. "Do you mean the one we went to before?" She was honestly just barely getting used to the size of Weiss's 'small' house, and she was sure she wouldn't be very good with one ten times larger.

"Well, not really… I won't be able to see my parents unless I go to our main residence." Weiss said, hoping to convince Ruby to come. "I could go on my own, but I think I'll need some moral support for this one. My father can be downright stubborn."

"Oh, so that's who you got it from!" Ruby exclaimed in mock amazement.

Weiss's serious mood cracked and she smiled as she play smacked Ruby on her arm. "Stop it! I'm serious. I could really use you."

"We're a team Weiss. Just because we're not fighting Grimm, doesn't mean we're not going into battle." Ruby said, remembering something she'd read in one of her books a long time ago.

"You have no idea." Weiss muttered grimly. "Well, we won't have to worry about it till after exams anyway!" She exclaimed, shaking her head quickly like she wanted the subject to disappear.

Ruby took the hint and dropped the conversation. Details could always be figured out later. "So we've successfully wasted five minutes. What's next?"

Weiss had to smile. The younger team leader seemed to think it was her responsibility to let everyone do what they wanted and help them do it, if necessary. "How about you pick something? I don't have any thing else I wanted to do today."

Ruby thought for a moment. "Well, there were a few things…"

Weiss smiled at how Ruby seemed uncomfortable picking things to do. "Well if you don't tell me, how am I supposed to know what we're doing?"

Weiss found herself slammed backward on the bed, her face covered in a wave of short black hair with red highlights near the ends. Ruby readjusted and kissed Weiss sloppily, saliva running down Weiss's chin as the two tongues fought.

Ruby jumped away just as fast as she'd come, making Weiss wonder if she'd simply daydreamed the whole thing. Weiss sat up looking at Ruby as she wiped away the proof of the kiss's occurrence.

"What was that for?"

"Number one, done!" Ruby announced with a sly grin.

Catching on, Weiss smiled back seductively. "Happy to be of assistance. I wonder what number two could be?"

Ruby suddenly got nervous and felt like she should get out of this line of thinking before something more happened. "Cookies!" She spit out automatically, cursing herself for not coming up with something better on the spot.

Weiss let out a small chuckle. "Lead the way."

* * *

**End Note:**

**Thanks for reading!**

**I have made my release schedule for the rest of the chapters. Two will be released in November because I will be taking the opposite weeks off for my studies and NaNoWriMo. Weekly releases will return in December.**

**Come back next week (November 5th) for Chapter 15!**


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